Unexpected Miracles
by agent1332
Summary: Takes place just before Unending. Deals with the budding relationship between Cameron and Carolyn. S/J established; Sam/Vala/Carolyn friendship established. Cam/Lam, D/V beginnings
1. Chapter 1

Disclaimer: I own nothing in this story. They are owned by the wonderful people at Gekko. This is just the ramblings of my overactive imagination that won't be quiet

Carolyn sat there staring at the test results. She could not believe what they said. 'I guess it really can happen in real life and not just the movies." She wonders what his reaction will be to her being pregnant. She wonders what her father will say when he finds out who the father is. That reaction scares her more than Cameron's.

She has a general idea of when she conceived, just not the actual date. Not once that weekend did they remember to use protection. She thinks she can hopefully salvage his career without destroying the tenuous relationship she has built with her father so far or cause too many problems between the two while they go to the Asgard home world of Orilla.

Over the past three weeks since they got Vala back and Adria's ascension, especially after that weekend they spent together up in Minnesota, she and Cameron have begun to explore where their relationship is headed. Which is crazy, seeing as how it all started with Amy Vandenberg ending their relationship when she couldn't understand why he was so worried when Vala went missing during her crazy mission to bring down Adria.

Flashback:

_Carolyn was sitting in her office going over some lab reports she had requested when Cameron walked in._

"_Hey, you leaving to go on your date with Amy soon?" Carolyn asked him, trying to hide her dislike of her from him while she went back to her reports. They always made a point to let the other know they were leaving the base if the other needed to stay and finish work. It became a ritual shortly after they both started working at Stargate Command._

"_Nope." Cameron replied._

_Carolyn__'__s head shot up and she studies him. His eyes red and puffy from crying and he had a dejected manner about him, more so than the last time she saw him._

"_What happened?" She asks him full of concern and almost afraid of the answer._

_Cameron gives a small laugh. __"__Amy left me a message on my answering machine last night cancelling our date.__"__ He told her. __"__Then she leaves another message today on my voicemail on my cell phone telling me that she can__'__t be in this relationship any longer if all I do is drop everything and run after Vala every time she decides she wants my attention.__"_

_Carolyn just stares at him, not quite sure how to respond to that. She never liked Amy, but to accuse Cameron of that was absurd._

"_I mean seriously. What does she expect me to do? A member of my team, one of my good friends is missing, and she wants me to stop thinking about ways to try and find her and bring her back so that __Jackson stops moping around the place because she is feeling a little left out of my life.__"__ Cameron rants after a few minutes of silence. __"__Not to mention, she is always asking about what I have been doing, even though she knows that I cannot tell her. She is constantly badgering me to tell her about everything, and lately she has been after me to quit Stargate Command and the Air Force, and take a desk job. One where I will work 9-5, Monday to Friday and spend the rest of my time doting on her that is not connected in any way to any branch of the Armed Forces.__"_

_That stunned Carolyn. __"__Does she know you at all?__"__ She asked him._

"_Apparently not as well as I thought she did." Cameron responded._

"_You know I didn'__t like her much before, but now I down right hate her.__"__ Carolyn commented. Cameron deflated a bit at this. __"__When you first told me you two were dating, after Vala told me all about her, I decided to reserve judgment on her until I met her. When I met her at the restaurant that night when my parents started down the path of reconciliation I could tell that she didn__'__t like any of us. Not sure why though. Probably because we all went to the same restaurant and you stopped to say __'__Hi__'__ to dad. I knew at that moment that she wouldn__'__t make a good military wife. She couldn__'__t even get through the pleasantries of you greeting a senior officer. Didn__'__t you explain to her at the outset of your relationship that doing that was an unwritten regulation in the UCMJ?__"_

"_Nope, I forgot that one." Cameron replied, a hint of a smile gracing his lips as he appreciates her honesty. "You would think that she would have been used to it though. That wasn'__t the first time we ran into your father while out. Maybe she thought I was stalking your father to try to get a promotion out of him or something.__"_

"_Yeah, fat chance of that happening." Carolyn stated with a hint of sarcasm. "She obviously never took the time to talk with my father. One minute talking with him and you know that he hates people who try to kiss his ass or leech."_

_Carolyn started to put all of her files away, deciding to call it a night knowing he needs a friend right now._

"_How about we go out for drinks tonight?" Carolyn suggested. "We could go to O'__Malley__'__s and shoot some pool as well.__"_

_Cameron watched her for a moment, as she put the files away that she was working on, trying to see if she was doing this out of pity. Sensing that she wasn__'__t he decided to go for it._

"_Sure. It'__s not like I have anything better to do.__"__ He agreed._

End of Flashback.

That one night turned into Carolyn taking General O'Neill up on his offer of the use of his cabin for a weekend after the both of them had a few too many beers in them. It was a good thing they were both off the schedule that weekend, otherwise it would have taken some fancy talking with her father to let them both have the weekend off without telling him why.

The night before they went up to Minnesota though is when she is pretty sure she got pregnant. That was the first time they had sex. She calls it that because that is all it was. Comfort sex. When he woke up the next morning in her apartment, both were obviously hung over and 'naked as a jaybird', with instructions on how to get to O'Neill's cabin scribbled down on a napkin, he had a few moments to go over the events from the previous night. She knows this because when she woke up trying to figure out why he was naked and in her bed he told her what he remembered from the night before.

After some discussion they decided that the best way to salvage their friendship was to take the time up at the cabin and discuss all that was going on with both of them away from the influences of the SGC. Both put in calls to the mountain letting Walter know they would be unavailable for the next 3 days, and not to reach them unless Vala was found.

That weekend had been an eye opening experience for both of them. The first day they were there was spent apart, coming to terms with some revelations that were made since they left the mountain. That night they sat down in the living room to discuss what they had learned from their introspection. Their revelations caused for some mixed emotions from Cameron. Mostly because he was also dealing with a failed relationship. He wanted to make sure that this was not a rebound situation before entering another romantic relationship.

Carolyn understood where he was coming from in that regard. In fact she was grateful for Cameron wanting to take that extra time to make sure this wasn't a rebound situation.

That weekend they decided not to add anymore strain to their friendship and not have sex again until they were both sure this is what they truly wanted. Carolyn was grateful for that as well. She was still trying to come to grips with the fact that she slept with one of her good friends in a bid to comfort him after his failed relationship. Cameron saw that this was a relief to Carolyn and realized it was the right decision to make.

That decision though didn't last as long as they had hoped it would. The last night at the cabin, they sat in front of the fireplace talking about what they wanted for the future. The scene was one that you would find in a chick flick, the roaring fire in the fireplace, no overhead lights just a few lit candles to add to the light of the fire, two lovers/friends sipping wine talking about what they wanted in life. As the night wore on, the more wine was drank.

At one point Cam just looked at Carolyn and knew that he wasn't rebounding, that Amy was just a distraction. He realized that this woman is the one that he wants to spend the rest of his life with, as she understands him better than anyone else could. He knows that she understands what it means to be a military wife, even though she had never intended to be one, having witnessed first hand what being a military wife did to her mother.

He tells her this just before claiming her mouth in a passionate kiss that he hopes conveys to her that he is sincere. That night neither of them slept, Carolyn hoping and praying that he was telling the truth, that this is what he wants, and Cam hoping and praying that she believes that this is what he wants. They both recognize that they need to build on this relationship if it is going to last, and making love whenever the fancy took them is not going to help build on that foundation.

They hadn't made love since that last night at the cabin. Cam could tell that Carolyn wanted to make sure this would last before retaking that next step so he worked to make sure they were never in a situation where their libido's would overcome their common sense. Carolyn was thankful for this. She wasn't too sure how her father would react to their budding romance, and she didn't want to rock the boat at this point as they were just starting to regain what they had when she was little.

She decided that she should talk to someone about what was going on, she just wasn't sure who she should talk to. She couldn't talk to her mother about this because she doesn't know about the relationship yet either. Boy is she in a pickle.

Just then Sam walked into her office to say goodbye, as she was leaving for Washington to spend time with Jack before leaving. She could tell that something was bothering Carolyn, and had been the past couple of days. She decided to talk to her friend to see if there was anything she could do to help.

"Hey. What's wrong Carolyn?" Sam asked her.

"Oh nothing. I'm just pregnant." Carolyn confides. "I mean, what are the odds of that happening. The first time you have sex in more than a year and you get pregnant. Not to mention we only had sex a handful of times that weekend, but still. How often does that happen outside the movies?"

To say Sam was shocked would be an understatement. This was not what she was expecting to find out to be the problem.

"Wow." Sam replies, showing how shocked she is. "Does your dad know your seeing Cameron? Does Cameron know?"

It is a well known fact with all SG-1 members, past and present, that Cam and Carolyn had started a relationship. There were mixed feelings about it at the beginning, but everyone can see how they are making each other happy just by trying. Sure they have had issues to deal with, the main one being telling their respective parents about the relationship. Even though Cam wants to be able to tell his parents at least, he can understand where she is coming from in wanting to make sure things are going to work out before bringing in outside influences that might try to destroy what is slowly growing.

"Not too sure, and just found out myself, so no." Carolyn informs her. "I'm not sure I should tell either of them before you guys leave. Although it would probably be a good idea to tell them. I mean you will be gone for at least 6 weeks, maybe more depending on how long you guys will stay on Orilla. You could be gone for more than 2 months. That would look great when they get back. 'Hey honey how are you? Oh by the way I am 3+ months pregnant, surprise.'"

Sam could see where she is coming from and does not envy her friend with the task ahead of her. "You at least need to tell Cam so that he won't be blinded by it when we return. This is definitely something that you shouldn't keep from him."

"I know. I'm just trying to figure out how to tell him without scaring him off before you guys leave." Carolyn confides. "Maybe I should go to the mall and see if I can find an idea of how to tell him."

"Great idea." Sam encourages. "Vala and I can come with you to help if you'd like. I'm sure between the three of us we can come up with something."

"Thanks, I'd like that." Carolyn accepts with a smile. She knows that Vala will be ecstatic to learn of her pregnancy as she was the one that convinced all the nay sayers of their team that this relationship should be given all the support they could. She never liked Amy Vandenberg, but like Carolyn put up with her for Cameron's sake, nothing more.

Sam stood up to leave. "You should think about cluing your parents in on your relationship with Cam. I can understand where you are coming from wanting to keep this from your dad, all things considered, but you might want to tell them about the relationship first then the pregnancy when you have entered your second trimester." With that last piece of wisdom Sam left in search of Vala.

Carolyn knew she was right. As she was getting her things together for her shopping trip with Sam and Vala, thank god they weren't leaving for another two days, she was contemplating how they should tell their parents about their relationship. She sent Cam a text letting him know that she would be leaving the base with Sam and Vala for a few hours to get some last minute girl time in before their long mission to the Asgard home world. Just as she arrived at the surface with Sam and Vala, she received a reply letting her know that he envied her being able to leave while he was in the midst of preps, and wanted to confirm they were still on for tonight. After replying that yes they were still on, they all piled into Sam's SUV and headed into Colorado Springs to look for the perfect gift.


	2. Chapter 2

Ch2

"So, just how far along are you?" Vala asked Carolyn. She had an idea of what to do but needed more specific information.

"I'm about 1 month along." Carolyn informed her. "Why?"

"Well, its just that I was on a few websites earlier today for Niagara Falls Canada, just wanting to see what was available there. There is this one store there, on Clifton Hill, called The Fun Factory, where they make wax impressions of your hand for you to take home. Seeing as how it is only 1:00pm I was wondering if we had the time to go and check it out." Vala explained.

"Vala, Cam and I are hanging out tonight." Carolyn explained.

"Yes I know. But what time are you meeting up?" Vala asked.

"He is coming over to my place for 8:00pm. Why?" Carolyn informed her, suddenly intrigued with where this is going.

"Well perhaps we could get permission to beam over to the base in Niagara Falls, NY, then drive over to check this place out and see if there is something there that will help us." Vala explained. "Have you had an ultrasound done yet?"

Carolyn and Sam both turned to Vala, not surprised she knows about this procedure, yet surprised she would ask this question.

"Not yet." Carolyn informed her. "Why?"

"Well you could get one done, and give a picture of it to Cameron in a picture frame, with a caption that reads 'I can't wait to meet you daddy.' or something like that." Vala informs them.

Carolyn suddenly is smiling with a smile that just lit up her face. Both Sam and Vala could tell by the look on her face that this idea is perfect. The wheels in Sam's head started turning.

"Vala, do you remember the number for the Fun Factory?" Sam asked. "I just don't want to go there if they can't help us with this."

"Not off the top of my head but I am sure I can get Walter to get me the number." Vala quickly pulls out her cell phone, and calls the mountain. After a quick conversation with Walter she hangs up. "Okay I have the number. Lets hope they can help us."

A quick call to the Fun Factory proves fruitful. They can help. The next step would be convincing the General that this is a good idea without giving away too much. Sam decided to call Jack to see if he could help them.

"General O'Neill's office, this is Colonel Davis, how may I help you?" Davis answered.

"Hey Paul, it's Sam. How are you?" Sam asks.

"I'm good how are you?" Davis replies.

"Not too bad. Is the General around?" Sam asks.

"He is in a meeting with the President and the Joint Chiefs right now." He informs her. "Is there anything I can help you with?"

"Actually, maybe you can. Carolyn, Vala, and I want to go to Niagara Falls, Canada for a few hours and need Jack's authorization to have the Odyssey beam us to the base in Niagara Falls NY and back." Sam explains. "Do you think you could help me with that?"

"Actually I can." Davis informs her. "The General left instructions that you are allowed to beam over here tonight. I don't see any reason why we can't add a couple extra beams in for you."

"Thanks, Paul. I'll call you when we are at my house and you can beam us from there." Sam advises. "Just make sure we have a secured area to beam into and a car made available. We should arrive at my house within the next 30 minutes."

"Sure thing. I'll work on those while waiting for your call." Davis confirms before ending the call.

"Alright. That is taken care of." Sam informs them, although needlessly as they had been listening to her end of the conversation.

"Now from the information they gave us, you can do an impression of your had holding a picture holder." Vala gets right back into their plan. "They also gave us a list of all the colors available. I think you should do the peach color, with a green picture holder. The decision on which picture holder to use you can decide when we get there."

"Why peach and not another color?" Carolyn asked, curious as to the color choice.

"They told us it is close to a skin tone." Vala reminded her. "So I figure you use that. We can look at the different colors when we get there and decide then if you want to change the color."

"Makes sense." Sam chimed in. "You won't know the sex of the baby for a while yet, so going with a gender specific color is kind of out of the question. Besides they also said if the hand is taken properly it can last a long time. Just think about how scarred your child will be if you have a boy and you made a pink hand."

"True." Carolyn agrees, the sighs. "I just hope that this doesn't break our relationship."

They drive in silence as they all realize none of them know for sure what Cameron's reaction will be. They can all hope what his reaction will be. Just as they were pulling into the drive at Sam's Vala pulls out her cell phone and sends a text.

"What are you doing?" Sam asks her.

"I'm letting Daniel know that we are going to Niagara Falls for some shopping." Vala lets them know. "I am also asking him to put out feelers with Mitchell to see what his take is on this and to call me when he has the information."

"Vala!" Sam and Carolyn scream at her at the same time.

"What? We were talking about it the other day." Vala explains. "Daniel was going to pose the questions to him during our trip to Orilla anyway. Questions like 'What would you do if Carolyn ended up pregnant?' and 'Do you want to have children with her' and questions along those lines. I just told him to ask those questions now. It's not like I told him you are pregnant."

"Yes but Daniel is smart. He will be able to put two and two together to get four." Sam rebuts, upset that Vala would do this.

"Oh please." Vala scoffs. "Daniel would never think that. I was of the opinion that these questions should have been asked already. We all know that the two of you will go the distance. If these thoughts are already in his head when he sees the hand, then it won't go as badly tonight."

"I hope you're right and this doesn't backfire." Sam informs her. Carolyn just nods her head in agreement, wondering if what Vala did was a good thing or a bad thing. One thing she does know for sure is that they will definitely find out tonight.

Sam lets them into her house and they make their way down to the basement where a room has been set up for this exact purpose. As they all get into position, Sam makes the call to Col. Davis.

"General O'Neill's office, this is Colonel Davis, how may I help you?" Davis answered.

"Hey Paul, its Sam. We are in position and ready to beam over." Sam informs him.

"Great. I just finished setting everything up on this end about 10 minutes ago." Davis advises her. "There will be a Government car with diplomatic plates on it waiting for you so that you won't have too many issues with customs when you cross. I will inform the Odyssey that you are ready to beam now."

"Thanks Paul." Sam replies. As soon as they hang up the white light indicative of an Asgard beam envelops the three friends, and they soon find themselves standing on the bridge of the Odyssey.

"Col. Carter, Vala, Dr Lam." Major Marks greets them. He stands up and steps away from his console handing a radio to Sam. "Just radio me with this radio when you are ready to return. It's not on the normal frequency's so no one at Cheyenne will know that you have requested a beam up from Niagara Falls."

"Thank you Major." Sam replies as she accepts the radio.

"You're welcome Ma'am. We are just waiting for confirmation from the ground that everything is ready for you to beam down." Marks informs her. After approximately 1 minute, Marks receives confirmation that everything is ready for them to beam down. "Everything is set. Enjoy your afternoon ladies."

"Thank you Major, we will." Carolyn thanks him for the three of them.

They soon find them selves in a secure hanger where their car is located, along with an unexpected visitor. Waiting for them by the car is Col. Davis, who has started walking over to them with an envelope tucked securely under his arm.

"Col. Davis, we weren't expecting to see you here." Carter greets him in surprise. They are all glad to see him as he has been one the more loyal supporters of the Stargate program in Washington from the beginning.

"I am just here for a few minutes Sam then I am back to Washington." Davis informs them. "I am just here delivering some papers to Vala, courtesy of the President." Davis hands the envelope to Vala. "On behalf of the President I am here to officially hand you your full Citizenship papers. There has been a background created for you in detail that has also been included that you need to learn and memorize completely."

To say Vala was stunned would be a huge understatement. Sam was just as shocked as Vala but had schooled her expression not to show it. Carolyn had a soft smile on her face.

"We will set you up with a house close to Col. Carters, as well as arrange for you to receive formal Drivers Education." Davis continues. Tears are beginning to form in Vala's eyes. "Once you have completed this course, Home World Security will assist you in purchasing a vehicle." Davis stopped when he saw the expression on Vala's face.

"So no more living in the mountain?" Vala questions. "No more relying on a Senior member of the program to escort me off the base?"

These questions break the hearts of all three standing with her. Davis realizes at this moment what they have done to her the entire time she has been here. Never once did he hear a serious complaint about her situation, because she knew that it was required in order gain their complete trust.

"Until you have your full Drivers License and your own vehicle, the President would like that you are still accompanied by someone when you leave the base. Just to make sure that you arrive home safe and get back to the base safely." Davis informs her. "That way there would be less paperwork involved if you were to be pulled over by the police. However this does not mean that you will have to give up your quarters on base either. As your current quarters are located in the same section as the rest of your team, you won't need to move to that location."

Vala stood there and stared at the papers not really believing this was happening. She grabs Davis into a hug. Davis was momentarily stunned by this but quickly recovers and returns the hug. After they pull away, he can still see the tears in her eyes, as well as the joy of knowing that she has been totally accepted by the people of earth.

"Several requests for this have come into the President over the past three months from various SGC personnel." Davis informs her. "After what has happened in the past couple months, the President has decided that this is a request that his is more than happy to grant."

"Thank you." Vala states full of emotion. "Thank you from the bottom of my heart. I can't begin to describe to you how much this means to me."

"Oh I have an idea." Davis states. "I'll pass along to the President your thanks when I get back to Washington. And with that I must leave to return to my duties. You ladies have a good day." With that Davis pulls out a radio, similar to the one Marks handed Carter, and is beamed back to the Odyssey.

When Davis reaches the Odyssey, he greets Marks.

"Did you get it?" Davis asks.

"Every second of it." Marks confirms for him. He hands him a disc with the video on it.

"Thanks, I'll get this to the President and the Joint Chiefs so that they can see her reaction, and not just hear me inaccurately describe it." Davis takes the disc and is prepared to beam back to the General's office.

"Sir, make sure to pass along our thanks when you meet with them." Marks requests of Davis. "We all have a soft spot for Vala since she came here."

"Will do Major." Davis confirms for him right before he is beamed back to the Pentagon.

Back on the ground, Vala is still staring in wonder at the papers she was given. She is gently steered towards the car by Carolyn while Sam makes her way to the drivers door. Sam noticed that Carolyn wasn't too shocked by this.

"You don't seem to surprised by this." Carter comments to Carolyn.

"That's because I'm not." Carolyn confirms for her. "It was going to happen tomorrow afternoon in the gate room. A formal swearing in as a citizen will probably still happen, they probably just needed to give her her papers incase we were questioned at customs."

Vala and Sam round on her. "You knew this was going to happen?" Vala asked her.

"Dad told me last night." Carolyn told her. "He also told me that he had to claim you as his long lost daughter in order for the IOA to shut up about it. You can't lock a General's daughter up in a mountain for the rest of her life now can you?"

"No you can't." Sam agreed with a chuckle.

"So, legally we are sisters?" Vala wanted to know. "My legal name on these documents still says Vala Mal Doran."

"Dad thought you would prefer to keep your last name." Carolyn explained. "Both he and my mother are listed as your parents. Mom saw how important this was too him, and since she still loves him she offered to do this."

"Wow." Vala is still amazed by all of this. 'I have a family who actually care about me. This will take some getting used to.' Vala thought.

A/N: The Fun Factory is an actual store located on Clifton Hill in Niagara Falls Canada, and they do make Wax Hand impressions as souvenirs.


	3. Chapter 3

Ch 3

Sam, Carolyn and Vala arrived at the Fun Factory approximately 45 minutes from the time they left the base. It was a lazy Wednesday afternoon and there weren't that many people walking around the area. They notice there are a few things to do in the area, so they decide to get the hand made first then explore some of the other attractions and stores that are available.

When they arrive at the store they notice a Build-a-Friend booth at the front of the store and the wax hand counter towards the back of the store. They look around at the different animals they can make, as well as the different outfits you can put on the animals.

"OH, look at this eagle." Vala exclaims. "Isn't he so cute?"

Carolyn and Sam walk over to where Vala is standing holding up the animal skin.

"That is cute." Carolyn agreed. "Look Sam, here is a cute monkey." Carolyn holds up a skin of a monkey. "It would look great with the Air Force outfit we saw on the other side."

Just as they were getting into looking at the different skins and outfits one of the stores employee's walks over to them.

"Did you need help with anything, or did you have any questions about the process?" Asked the employee, whose name tag said her name is Rebecca.

"We are just looking right now Rebecca, thank you." Vala let her know. "If we do need any help or have any questions we will definitely come looking for you."

"Not a problem. I will be just on the other side straightening up the T-Shirts." Rebecca replies and walks over to where the T-Shirts are.

"What do you think, should we get them?" Sam asks.

"I think we should." Vala replies. "I think my Daniel will definitely like this eagle. But lets get them after Carolyn has her hand made."

They take the empty skins with them and walk over to the wax counter. They notice no one is currently having their hands made and there are two employee's behind the counter.

"Why do you suppose their uniform is different from Rebecca's?" Vala asks slightly puzzled.

"I'm not sure." Carolyn replies. "We could ask them. So should we go with the peach or should we get a different color?"

As they look at the shelf, they see all the different colors that are offered.

"Were you looking to get a hand made?" One of the girls behind the counter asks.

"Yes. Our friend here just found out she is pregnant and is looking for a special way to tell her boyfriend." Vala confirms for them as she points to Carolyn. "Do you have any suggestions as to what she should have done?"

"Congratulations!" The employee exclaims. Her name tag says Jennifer. "Okay so what we can do is have you hold a picture holder, and then you can put a picture of the ultrasound in it." Jennifer turns to the counter behind her to grab the different picture holders they have available. "We can also write a message on it, something along the lines of 'Can't wait to meet you' or 'Hi Daddy' or 'Baby's first picture'."

"Oh, I like that last one, because then you can change the picture to it's first picture once it is born." Vala exclaims.

"Me too." Carolyn and Sam say at the same time.

"Alright so we know you will be holding a picture holder and will have writing. Since you plan on keeping it for a while, I would suggest you have the hand glazed. The glaze is a protective coat we can put on it to give it the glossy look, it also helps withstand the heat." Jennifer suggests.

"Good idea." Carolyn confirms with Sam and Vala nodding their heads. "I'll definitely want it glazed then."

"So do you know which picture holder, and what color you want the hand?" Jennifer asks.

"How about you do it like the one on the shelf?" Sam suggests. "The purple with the green round one."

Carolyn and Vala are looking for it while Jennifer goes and grabs it off the shelf for them to see up close.

"So this is what it would look like just with your hand, not mine." Jennifer tells them.

"Can I hold it?" Vala asks.

"Sure, just don't press on it too hard as it is still wax and will break." Jennifer comments while handing it over to Vala. The three friends inspect the hand, passing it between them, being very careful.

"I definitely like this combination." Carolyn confirms.

"I do as well. Cameron will also." Vala advises Carolyn.

"I take it Cameron is the father?" Jennifer asks.

"Yes he is." Carolyn drawls out. "That man is one fine piece of Air Force property that I get all to myself."

Jennifer chuckles at this as she accepts the hand back and replaces it on the shelf.

"So we have decided on a purple hand with a green picture holder, with writing and glaze. Do you want it solid as well" Jennifer confirms. "The solid one is the one I just showed you. It is filled with a wax powder and sealed off. We also offer a hollow hand. I do not recommend that one as it is empty inside and will still melt in a short period of time even with the glaze."

"We will definitely do the solid." Carolyn confirms.

"Great. Just to let you know before we get started that it will take approximately 2 hours for the writing and the glaze to dry. Will that be a problem?" Jennifer asks.

"Do we have to wait here while it dries before leaving?" Vala wants to know.

"Absolutely not. What we do is we hand you a bill with all that you have done, you take it to the cashier and she will cash you out. Then you can wander around the hill for the 2 hours and them come back to pick it up." Jennifer explains. "This way you also won't have to worry about carrying it around with you everywhere you go."

"Excellent." Vala exclaims. "So Carolyn, while you are having your hand made, I will take pictures, and Sam will have our animals stuffed."

"Did you bring a camera?" Sam asked.

"No, but I did notice that they are selling disposables over by the counter." Vala informs them. "So I will just go purchase one of those and take the pictures, then have my Daniel develop the film when we get back."

"That is a great idea Vala." Sam agrees.

"So do you want to wait for Vala to get the camera before we start?" Jennifer asks picking up on the name.

"Yes I would." Carolyn confirms.

Vala walks over to the counter and purchases one of the disposables. Sam decided to use the 'company' credit card she was issued and have the whole day written off. As they are standing at the counter waiting for the authorization on the credit card to come through, Vala wanders over to where Rebecca is folding the T-Shirts.

"My friend Sam will require assistance in stuffing the two animal skins she is holding once she is finished at the counter." Vala informs her.

"Not a problem." Rebecca replies, puts down the shirt she was working on and goes over to meet Sam at the cashier's counter.

Vala walked back over to the wax counter where Carolyn was waiting to begin. She noticed that Carolyn was looking up, and looked up her self. She noticed for the first time a video playing that gives the general idea of the process.

Jennifer noticed that Vala returned with the camera and decided it was a good time to get started.

"Okay so to start what you need to do is decide which hand you are going to hold the picture holder with." Jennifer informs them. After testing the picture holder with both hands Carolyn decided to use her right hand as it felt like a more natural pose.

"Okay with that decided what you need to do Carolyn is bare your right arm up to your elbow, put your hand in the ice bucket so that you palm hit's the bottom, and don't come up until I tell you too." As Jennifer is giving Carolyn these instructions and Vala gets the camera ready, she uses the pliers on the back counter to cut off the bottom of the picture holder.

Carolyn puts her hand in the water and quickly inhales with shock at how cold the water is, Vala takes a few pictures.

"Cold is it?" Vala asks with a smirk.

"Very." Carolyn confirms in a whispery voice as though in pain, causing Vala to grin.

After 15 seconds Jennifer instructs Carolyn to pull her hand out of the water, where Carolyn gasps again.

"Man does that make your hand feel colder." Carolyn gasps out.

"That it does." Jennifer comments with a smirk, as this is something she has heard many times in the course of doing her job. "It is much better going into the wax with a numb hand than not. Personal experience talking."

During the idle chit chat, Jennifer grabs the rag that is on the counter, and dries off Carolyn's arm. She then proceeds to put a mixture of hand sanitizer and hand lotion on Carolyn's arm about 2/3 of the way up her fore arm. She then hands the picture holder to Carolyn to hold.

"Okay, hold the picture holder the way you want it." Jennifer instructs Carolyn. "And step in front of the white wax."

As they shift over to the white pot, Jennifer is adjusting Carolyn's hand to allow for the best possible outcome.

"During this process you cannot move your wrist at all. If you move your wrist the wax will crack and then we will have to start all over again as I won't be able to fix it." Jennifer instructs Carolyn.

"Okay." Carolyn agrees.

"We will first do 5 dips of the white, then stir up the color, giving the white a chance to cool a little so the color will stick to your hand better. Once the color is stirred we will move over to the purple where I will dip you 5 more times." Jennifer advises her. "The first dip in the wax will feel warm and will make you want to move your hand. Try not to."

Carolyn nods to Jennifer letting her know that will do her best not to move and that she is ready to begin. Vala has the camera ready and takes a picture just as Jennifer pulls Carolyn out of the wax. A thin coating of white wax is seen on Carolyn's hand. With every dip you can see the wax get thicker and stronger. Vala Carolyn and Jennifer were chatting about Colorado Springs, and what they thought of the area so far. As Jennifer went to get the pole to stir the purple, a thought crossed both Vala and Carolyn's minds that they thought peculiar: not once did Jennifer ask them about their jobs nor about what Cameron did in the Air Force, for which they were both thankful as they did not want to have to answer those questions with lies as Jennifer was doing everything to make the experience memorable.

Just as Jennifer finished stirring up the purple, and was motioning Carolyn over to the purple pot, Sam came back carrying two boxes with the animals she had Rebecca help her stuff, and she joined in on the conversation. They all liked how the purple was turning out. After the fifth and final dip in the purple, as Jennifer was wiping off the last of the drips, Sam opened the boxes to show the animals to Carolyn and Vala.

"Look how good they turned out." Sam exclaimed, first pulling out the monkey with the Air Force uniform on him, then Vala's Eagle. "I didn't see anything that would suit Daniel so I left him naked." Sam explained with an impish grin.

"That's okay, I always wanted my Daniel to be perpetually naked." Vala joked. "Then I realized that no work would be done at all as everyone would simply be staring at him all the time, not getting any work done, which would in turn cause Daniel to be embarrassed by all the attention he would be getting, making it difficult for him to concentrate on his work."

They heard a barely contained snort of laughter, and all turned to see Jennifer with a wide grin on her face. They noticed that she had cut the top of Carolyn's had off, and had put her finger in the hand to loosen it and get air inside.

"Why are you doing that?" Vala inquired taking more pictures.

"To get air in the hand so that suction does not occur while we go to take the hand off as it would cause the hand to break." Jennifer explained. "Alright we are going to put you hand back in the water, just past your knuckles to cool it off. Once it is cooled off enough we'll take it out of the water and slide your hand out." While she is explaining this to the three friends she is putting Carolyn's hand in the water.

"What would happen if you take the hand out too soon?" Sam wanted to know.

"It would collapse in on itself and be very hard to restore." Jennifer explained. "We cool the fingers all the way to ensure they do not collapse. The rest of the hand is left somewhat warm so that there is pliability when pulling out the hand yet will not loose its shape."

"Its not as cold this time around." Carolyn stated. "Which is probably because of the layers of wax on my hand. Right?"

"Yep." Jennifer said with a smile. "You wouldn't believe how many people actually say that. If I got a nickel every time someone said that, I would have made at least 1,000 so far this year." As she is telling them this she dunks Carolyn's hand all the way in and pulls it out quickly.

"That is a lot of money." Vala exclaims. "Is that for just your customers, or everyone's?"

"Everyone's actually." Jennifer confesses. "But it sure feels like we hear it more often."

As Jennifer is preparing to slip the hand off of Carolyn's hand, a silence falls over the group as they contemplate what Jennifer has said.

"Okay, I want you to relax your hand and slowly pull it out." Jennifer instructs Carolyn as she gets a firm hold on the hand. "Let me know if you feel any suction, as I can poke a hole in the tips to get air in."

As Carolyn is pulling her hand out she doesn't feel any suction and proceeds with caution, not wanting to have to repeat the process. All three are awed by how easily the hand is slipped off. Once it is full off, Jennifer turns her full attention to the hand, checking it over to make sure there are no pressure cracks in the hand, as well as reshaping the base of the hand to look like an actual wrist. Once this is done she carefully submerges the hand in the ice in order for it to cool off. Carolyn had picked up the paper towel Jennifer had laid out for her while her hand was cooling off, and was wondering where to throw her garbage away. Jennifer saw this out of the corner of her eye and motioned to Carolyn where she can throw out the used paper towel.

After approximately 30 seconds, Jennifer pulled the hand from the water and inspected it one last time. Satisfied with the results she presented the near finished hand to Carolyn for inspection.

"So this is how it turned out." Jennifer was showing the hand from all angles for their inspection. Knowing the importance of the hand, she wanted to make sure it met with their expectations.

"Perfect." Carolyn exclaimed, with Sam and Vala agreeing. Vala took some more pictures of the hand in its present state, and noticed she only had 5 pictures remaining.

Jennifer turned to the counter behind her again, and grabbed two pieces of paper, and two pens. She handed one of the pens and one of the papers to Carolyn giving her instructions.

"Okay, what I need from you is your first and last name where it says 'Guest Name'. This is for when you come to pick up your hand. Then down where it says single hand writing put exactly what you want written on the hand. I will fill out the rest." Jennifer advises her and then proceeds to kneel in front of the white pot and puts about 1 inch of the base of the hand in the wax.

"What are you doing now?" Vala asks intrigued.

"I am warming up the bottom of the hand so that when I fill it with the wax powder, I can bend it over and seal it off." Jennifer explained.

"Is that another one of those nickel questions?" Sam asks with a soft smile.

"It certainly is." Jennifer confirms. "Although that one comes more from little kids than adults."

"What should I write on the hands guys?" Carolyn asks all of them, including Jennifer in the inquiry.

"Which statement would have the most impact on him?" Jennifer asks.

"Probably 'Can't wait to meet you Daddy!'" Sam comments.

"Yeah, you're probably right." Carolyn agrees.

"Then have that written." Jennifer suggests as she removes the white wax ring from the bottom of then hand, shifting over to in front of the ice bucket again, but still bending down. At this point they notice that she is filling the hand with the wax powder.

The three women all watch in fascination as Jennifer completes the hand. Not one of them moved as she finished filling the hand, then molding the wax on the counter to fit just right inside the hand and then folding over the softened part of the hand to seal it off. They noticed that doing this didn't completely seal off the hand, yet also noticed that Jennifer didn't seem too concerned about this.

They watched as she moved back over to the color pots, grabbed a ladle that was sitting on the lids, took a scoop of the purple wax, spread the wax on the counter, put the lid back on the purple pot, then set the ladle back down on the color lids. Next she picked up a spackling knife and fanned the wax on the counter to get it to dry faster. Once she was satisfied it was dried enough she put the 'scraper' back on the counter and picked up what looked to be a butter knife. She proceeded to scrape up the wax and fill in the bottom of the hand. After a few scrapes, Jennifer smoothed the bottom of the hand then turned it over and placed it on the black surface surrounding the wax pots to further smooth the bottom of the hand so that it would sit with out wobbling.

Once she was satisfied with the flatness of the bottom, she proceeded to put the hand back in the water fingers first. Once the hand was fully in the water the spell was broken, and Carolyn proceeded to write down what they agreed would be written on the hand for them to copy. Jennifer had turned back to the counter to grab a basket with 'markers' in it.

"What color would you like the writing to be in?" Jennifer asked setting the basket on the counter in front of the friends. As they were deciding Jennifer quickly took the hand back out of the water to make sure the bottom was sufficiently cooled. She then proceeded to make sure the bottom was flat still then put the hand, bottom first, to finish cooling off the hand.

With the color decided and noted, Jennifer wrote up the bill, then took the hand out of the water and placed it on the counter to make sure the bottom did not bubble again.

"There you go." Jennifer pronounced. "Did you want to get a box for it as well? It would be 1.49 and would make sure that your hand will travel home safely."

"Absolutely." Vala confirmed before Carolyn could. Jennifer marked it down on the bill as well as the 'glaze slip', then proceeded to hand the bill to Carolyn.

"Here you go. Just take to bill over to the cashier, and she will cash you out." Jennifer instructed. "As I mentioned it will take approximately 2 hours to dry. You can come back any time after the two hours to come pick up your hand, just make sure you bring your receipt back with you."

"Thank you Jennifer, you have been most helpful." Vala exclaimed as she reached out to shake her hand. As Jennifer shook her hand, she noticed that Vala was also slipping her a tip.

"You're welcome." Jennifer replied accepting the tip. "Y'all have a good afternoon."

"We will, thank you." Sam said.

As the three friends walked over to the cashier to pay for the hands and the stuffed animals, Jennifer proceeded to clean up her station, then picked up the finished hand turned to the sink and proceeded to prepare the hand to be written on and glazed.

A/N - thank you to all who reviewed, and have read this story. It means a lot to know you enjoy the story. The next chapter will be Cameron/Daniel centered. I will try to write in Jack and Teal'c, but am not sure if I have them written correctly.


	4. Chapter 4

Ch 4

At the same time that the girls were arriving at Sam's, Daniel and Cameron were breathing a sigh of relief that they were not going to have to get anyone to cover their absence from the mountain that afternoon.

The reason for their outing was ring shopping. Unbeknownst to Carolyn, Cameron had told the General about their relationship, and requested permission to marry Carolyn. That was one conversation Cameron was glad to survive with his career intact.

Flashback:

_Cameron walked down the corridor that would lead him to the General__'__s office. He is not sure if he should be having this conversation with the General this early into his relationship with Carolyn, but this is where he wants, and hopes where she wants, their relationship to head. Upon reaching the General__'__s office he knocks on the door quickly before he loses his nerve. Again._

"_Enter.__"__ General Landry called._

_Cameron takes a deep breath, releases it, and opens the door to enter the __'__office of doom', as he has taken to calling it in recent weeks._

"_Colonel, take a seat.__"__ Landry greets his 2IC. __"__I just need to finish this report and I will be right with you."_

_Landry had an idea of what Mitchell wanted to see him about. He wouldn't be a General if he didn't know what was happening on his own base. He heard the rumors about Mitchell and his daughter going out on dates, and knew them to be fact. He recalled the conversation he had with Jack two weeks prior about Mitchell and Carolyn asking the General for the use of his cabin. What Carolyn and Mitchell don't know is that they confessed the real reason for the trip to O'Neill and O'Neill in turn informed Landry of the situation._

_Both General's agreed not to do anything about the potential relationship as the Non-Frat regs would not apply to the couple._

"_What can I do for you Colonel?" Landry asks Cameron after putting aside the file he was working on._

"_Sir, I need to speak with you off the record about a personal matter." Mitchell requested._

"_Very well." Landry agreed, realizing something was upsetting the Colonel._

"_Sir, I want to tell you about the nature of the relationship I have with your daughter and how it came about." Mitchell informed him. "This is hard for me and I would appreciate it if you would hear me out before making any decisions."_

"_Go ahead." Landry prompted Mitchell to continue agreeing to do as he asked._

"_About two weeks ago, my ex-girlfriend broke up with me via a message left on my cell phones' voice mail." Mitchell started. "As I have done anytime I am having trouble coming to grips with something since arriving at this command, I have sought out your daughter for advise and companionship. After having told her what had happened she suggested we go to O'Malley's for drinks and to shoot pool. I agreed._

"_As the night wore on we both kept downing the shots hoping to forget the reason we were there in the first place." Mitchell paused for a moment as what he was about to tell the General could very well get him court marshaled and kicked out of the program. He leaned forward, braced his arms on his knees, and stared at the bottom of where the Generals desk met the floor, not really seeing it but lost in his memories. "One thing led to another and the next thing I remember is waking up next to your daughter with instructions scribbled down on a napkin to Gen. O'Neill's cabin in Minnesota._

"_I couldn't tell you what was said during that conversation, or which one of us was the one who called the General to get permission to use his cabin and along with the directions, or what our original intentions were for the use of our trip up to the cabin."_

_Cameron paused in his tale yet again. He could sense that the General was getting angry and did not have the courage to look up and meet the General in the eye._

"_What I can tell you is that I was about to get up, get dressed, and wait for her to wake up in the living room, but as I started to get out of the bed she woke up. I told her what I remembered from the night before. I can't even tell you with absolute certainty that we did have sex that night but she was convinced we did. Seeing as how she was a doctor and she wasn't threatening to kill me I decided the best course of action would be to just agree with her, and talk about what we were going to do next._

"_We figured that since we had the directions to General O'Neill's cabin it meant that we had talked to him and were given permission to use the cabin for a couple of days. When I checked my phone 30 minutes later, there was a message from General O'Neill confirming that it was okay for us to use the cabin for the weekend and where to find the spare key._

"_I was so scared that Carolyn wouldn't talk to me anymore and I would lose her friendship that I suggested we take advantage of the opportunity to get away from everyone and to just talk about it without any outside influences. I was pleasantly surprised when she agreed to come to the cabin with me, and we both called Walter , separately, to let him know that we would be unavailable for the rest of the weekend and to only call if the Ori were invading or if Vala was found. He agreed._

"_That weekend was an eye opening experience for both of us. The first day, after a lot of self reflection, we decided that we do want to be in a relationship. I also realized that for the relationship we wanted to have to last we would need to take it slow. I wasn't sure if the feelings I was suddenly feeling for Carolyn were a projection of what I had with Amy or if they were the real thing. I told Carolyn that I felt we should take it slow because I was afraid I was rebounding, and I didn't want to hurt her. I also told her that even though I didn't remember having sex with her, and as great as I knew it would be, I thought we should hold off having sex again until we were both sure this is what we wanted._

"_I could tell this was what she wanted as well because of the relief that flooded her face when I told her this. She was very confused about her actions and needed to come to grips with what had happened that night in order for her to move on, whether it was with me or without me in her life." Mitchell paused when there was a knock on the door leading to the briefing room._

"_Enter." Landry called out. Walter walked in the room. "What is it Walter?"_

"_Sir, I just wanted to remind you of your briefing with SG-3 in 1 hour, and to inform you that I was able to make those dinner reservations like you asked me to for tomorrow night at 1900hrs." Walter informed him._

"_Thank you Chief." Landry replied. "If I am still talking with Mitchell in 25 minutes reschedule SG-3's briefing for 1700hrs."_

"Yes Sir." Walter confirmed as he left the office.

"_Now, you were saying Mitchell?" Landry prompted him after two minutes when he was that he was having a hard time continuing. Landry was not sure what made him angrier, what had happened between Mitchell and his daughter or the events that lead to what had happened._

"_Yes Sir." Mitchell responded to the command he heard in Landry's voice and picked up the tale where he left off. "After that conversation the atmosphere went back to neutral ground, where we were comfortable with it being. We spent the rest of the weekend talking about our childhood's in greater detail than we had before, as well as our hopes and dreams for the future._

"_Staying the rest of the weekend at the cabin probably was a mistake in that it left us open to the temptation of having sex, but I can't say I regret it. As we were sitting in the Great room talking that last night there, it hit me like an epiphany - I am in love with Carolyn Lam, and have been for a while. Amy was my back up plan as I never would have thought in a million years that Carolyn would want to have any type of relationship with me other than friendship. I wanted to spend the rest of my life with her, waking up next to her, her being the mother of my children, my wife._

"_I tell her that I was absolutely sure that I am in love with her and want to be with her for the rest of my life before kissing her. We made love again that night, more than once. All the while I was praying with every fiber of my being that I was not misreading her signals, that she wanted the same thing._

"_The next morning when I woke up with her in my arms, I knew if we kept making love whenever the fancy took us, we would never be able to make the firm foundations for a relationship to last, so I resolved to make sure we were never in a situation where we were alone again until we were both ready for it with every breathe we took."_

Cameron paused again, needing to collect his thoughts. In the silence, the General studied the man sitting in front of him confessing to having slept with his daughter and being in a relationship with his daughter. He needed to know one thing before he allowed Mitchell to continued on so he asked his question.

"_Do you love my daughter Colonel?" Landry wanted to know._

"_With all my heart Sir." Mitchell confirmed staring the General in the eye while answering so the he knew he was being sincere. "That is part of the reason why I wanted to talk to you. Even after this short time in a relationship with your daughter I know there is no other woman in the Universe that I want to be the mother of my children. With your permission and your blessing Sir, I would like to marry your daughter, be her husband, her lover, the father of her children."_

Landry wasn't expecting that to come out of Mitchell's mouth. He was expecting anything but that. He appreciated the fact that he had the balls to say those things to him knowing that he could ruin his career. He had watched his daughter over the past two weeks since they returned from their weekend together, and noticed that she was happier than she had been since she stared at the SGC. She was happier with Cameron than she was when she heard that he and her mother were walking the path of reconciliation, and that was saying a lot.

_He knew for the sake of his daughters happiness that there was only one response to Mitchell's request. In fact, even if he didn't know all that he knew there would be only one response to Mitchell's request - to give his permission and his blessing. His daughter, for whatever reason, was completely and totally in love with Mitchell even if she hadn't confessed her feelings to him yet._

"_You know, I have been watching Carolyn since your return from Minnesota and I noticed that she is happier than she has been in a long time, and that includes her happiness that her mother and I are reconciling our marriage." Landry informed Mitchell. "Having heard all that you have confessed to me I now know the true reason behind her happiness that the base gossip did not supply."_

_Cameron went back to looking at the floor again not knowing where this was going._

"_Knowing this," Landry continued, "there really is only one response I can give to you. You have my permission and my blessing to marry my daughter Colonel."_

"_Thank you Sir." Cameron breathed a sigh of relief at having accomplished his goal without getting court marshaled. He just hoped that Carolyn didn't kill him when she finds out what he did._

"_Did you use protection?" Landry asked._

_Cameron's head snapped up at that question and all color drained from his face as he realized that not once that entire weekend did he think to use a condom, and he had no clue as to whether or not Carolyn was on the pill. His reaction was all the answer Landry needed. He sighed as he continued to watch Cameron._

"_OH God. I didn't even think about that." Cameron confessed. "And I didn't think to ask her either seeing as how we did not want to be in a situation where sex would be the outcome."_

End Flashback

They had talked some more about what Cameron was going to do. They knew that Carolyn would catch whether or not she was pregnant sooner than most seeing as how she is a doctor.

Walter came back to the briefing room in the 25 minutes requested by the General and noticed that he was still talking with Col. Mitchell. He had immediately gone back to the control room to contact Col. Reynolds to let him and his team know that their briefing on their last mission was being pushed back to 1700hrs as the General was in an important meeting and did not want to be disturbed.

Having decided his course of action Cameron approached Daniel to assist him with his quest. When he got to Jackson's office, he was glad that Vala was not there as that meant he would not have to explain what he wanted to do in front of her, knowing it would get back to Carolyn. Jackson agreed to help Mitchell execute his plan before they departed for Orilla as they had learned the day before.

Part of Jackson's role was to get Vala to get info on Carolyn's emotions without giving anything away. That was easier than expected, as Vala came waltzing into Daniel's office just as Cameron was about to leave. It took the two of them about 10 minutes of some fancy talking to get Vala to get the information Cameron wanted without giving too much information to her.

In the end it all worked out. Vala was even able to get some extra information for Cameron, things like what kind of ring she would like for an engagement ring.

Armed with that knowledge Daniel and Cameron received the General's permission to leave the base today to go shopping for a ring even though they were in the midst of preparations to leave for Orilla.

"Okay, I don't think we need to get the General to run interference today if Carolyn comes looking for you." Jackson advised Mitchell as he walked into his office.

"Why?" Cameron wanted to know.

"Well Sam came and got Vala to have a 'girls day out' with Carolyn before leaving." Daniel informed him. "Since Sam is leaving for DC tonight, and will be there until we leave this will be the last opportunity they will have to spend together."

"Oh." Cameron thought about this. "Do we know where they plan on going? I do not want to run into them at the mall."

"Vala sent me a text while Sam was changing that she would inform me where they are going." Daniel explains as he gets an alert that he has a new message in his inbox. He pulls out his cell phone and notices the text is from Vala. "Speak of the devil. She said that they are going to Niagara Falls, and will be back later tonight in time for your date with Carolyn."

Cameron's mind began wandering over all the information he knew about his girlfriend and two female teammates, and could not come up with a reason as to why the would go to Niagara Falls.

"Did she mention which side they would be going to?" Cameron wondered.

"She said they would be going to the Canadian side, doing touristy things and the like." Daniel confirmed while going through the multiple texts it took Vala to send him with all the information. "Lets head out before we someone tries to rook us into doing more of their work."

"Right behind ya." Mitchell confirms as he gets up from his desk. They had both changed into civvies about an hour ago in anticipation of a window of opportunity where they could leave without running into the 'Three Musketeers' as Cameron has dubbed them.

Just as they were signing out, Mitchell got a call from the General, wanting to know where they were. When told that they had just signed out, the General sighed in relief, and wished them happy hunting.

As Cameron and Daniel walked out to the parking lot they noticed someone leaning against Ford F-150 quad cab that was parked next to Cameron's '69 Mustang. As they got closer they noticed it was Gen. O'Neill.

"Jack." Daniel exclaimed. "What brings you here?"

"Well I heard about your little shopping excursion and realized it was high time to pick one of those up myself." Jack explained. "Besides, with the girls in Canada, I can look around here with Carter's teammates and not have to deal with possibly running into her while looking." Jack motioned for them to get into the truck. "Besides I have a special Credit Card, courtesy of the President to use for this special occasion." Jack confided. "Think of using it as a 'Thank you, from the American people for all the sacrifices you have made in service to your country'." Jack repeated, his voice laced with sarcasm.

"Yeah, I'm sure that's why he gave it to you?" Daniel scoffed. "Are you sure it's not a bribe to keep his front line team and his favorite General's happy?"

"Probably." Jack conceded.

"Did you threaten to resign again Sir if the President didn't allow you to charge the ring to the program?" Cameron asked a bit timidly. He still wasn't comfortable with the level of intimacy O'Neill allowed him to have.

"You see Daniel, the man is smart after all." Jack stated giving the real reason away. "But it wasn't just me though. Hank also threatened to quit and George threatened never to speak to him again if he didn't allow us all to charge the rings to the program."

"Jack, I've told you I don't know how many times, there is nothing going on between me and Vala!" Daniel vehemently denied any romantic relationship.

"But you wish there was." Cameron supplied. "You just aren't sure if she is serious or if she is playing with you."

Daniel glared at Cameron from the back seat. Jack was nodding his head in agreement with Cameron's statement and Daniel saw this.

"I can't believe you two." Daniel exclaimed. "What do I have to do to prove to you nothing is going on."

"Me thinks the lad doth protest too much, eh Mitchell?" Jack said in a horrible attempt at an old English accent.

"My my yes he doth." Mitchell agreed in an accent just as bad as Jack's.

"Gaud. There is just no reasoning with you." Daniel threw his hands up in the air in vexation.

"Jackson think about it." Mitchell advised him. "Think about your reaction when she was kidnapped by Athena, then when she went off the radar this last time. Who are you trying to kid that there is nothing there. Us or yourself?"

That shut Daniel up for the duration of the ride to the mall. Just as finished parking the truck, and had turned it off, Daniel spoke.

"You're right." Daniel confirmed in a tone neither Air Force man had ever heard him use. "I am trying to fool myself into believing there is nothing there. I know there is something there, but I don't know what to do about it any more."

Both Jack and Cameron wisely stayed quiet as they all made their way into the mall.

"Just keep an eye out for different rings." Jack advised. "We have all day. The girls aren't due to return until later this afternoon. We won't leave until we have exhausted all avenues."

With that the three men walked up to the malls directory to find the location of all the jewelry stores, knowing this is one time they would not have the luxury of cruising the mall looking for their destinations. They needed a battle plan to execute their objective in the most timely fashion. They had 3 hours to complete their mission.

A/N - they may be a little AU but oh well. D/V is starting to shape up. Let me know what you think.


	5. Chapter 5

Ch 5

"Okay, what's the plan?" Mitchell wanted to know. "Are we going to browse all of the jewelry stores before purchasing, or are we buying the first one we think our girl would like?"

"That is a good question Mitchell." O'Neill commented. "What do you think Daniel? Do we browse to see all that we have available to us, or do we buy the one we think 'is the right one'?"

"I say we browse." Daniel offered. "But if we find 'the one' we have to option to buy it, no questions asked."

"Better idea." Mitchell interjected before O'Neill could comment. "We have the jeweler put it on hold while we continue to browse."

"And you wondered why I put him in charge instead of Carter." O'Neill crowed.

"Yeah for all of two missions." Daniel replied.

"Hey now." Mitchell complained half heartedly as this ribbing had been done numerous times. "Enough of that. Where to first?"

"Let's head to Tiffany's." O'Neill suggested. "They usually have the best selections there."

"Sounds like a plan." Mitchell agreed. Daniel nodded his head in agreement and the three headed to Tiffany's.

"Hey Cam!" The three men turned toward where the person shouted, wanting to know who was flagging them down and if it was for them. Upon seeing the face to the voice, Cameron smiled.

"Hey Mads, what brings you to Colorado Springs?" Cameron asks, as he hugs her when she caught up.

"Came to see you before shipping out." She replied, giving him an eyebrow.

"Right, where are my manners." Cameron had the grace to blush. "Madison this is General O'Neill and Dr. Daniel Jackson. Guys this is my cousin Lt. Madison Parker. She's Navy." Madison snapped to attention at meeting a General.

"As you were Lt. I am not in uniform you do not need to salute me." Jack commanded, knowing exactly who she is.

"Nice to meet you Lt." Daniel greeted her shaking her hand.

"Nice to meet you both as well." Madison greeted. "I was hoping to get to spend at least two hours with you but that doesn't look like it will happen now. No worries, I'll just stop in town when I get back."

"No need to rush off on us Parker." O'Neill commented. "We are just three guys out ring shopping."

"Seriously?" Parker did a double take, and stares at Cameron. "You are out ring shopping? Please tell me Amy is not the one you are shopping for?"

"No she's not." Cameron confirmed. Relief flooded Parker's face.

"Then who are you shopping for?" Parker wanted to know, intrigued that he would be getting engaged to someone so soon after his failed, and completely retarded relationship, with Amy.

"Her name is Carolyn…" Cameron started.

"You are in love with Carolyn Lam?" Parker interrupted him. "You are the guy she has been going gaa gaa over the past three weeks?"

That question caught everyone's attention, amusing Jack and Daniel, and confusing Cameron.

"Going gaa gaa over?" O'Neill questioned with a smile. "Dr. Lam? Never."

"Nope, can't see her doing that." Daniel concurred.

"She's talked about me with you?" Mitchell wanted to confirm.

"She never gave a name or anything but yeah." Madison confirmed. "She would go on and on about how she is in love with this guy, would never reveal his name mind you. Then she told me a couple nights ago that he is the one, and I just had to come to Colorado Springs so she can introduce us. Plus she needs advise on how best to tell her father. I think she is kind of scared he might not like your relationship."

"Oh she has nothing to fear." O'Neill decreed. "In fact, Hank and I have had numerous conversations about those two. Now seeing as how you know Lam, you should know her tastes in jewelry right?"

"Yes Sir." Parker confirmed, wondering where he was going with this.

"Good. You can come with us to do some ring shopping only if you call me Jack." O'Neill commanded. "I can make it an order if needs be."

"Would O'Neill be fine?" Madison wanted to know.

"I can live with that." Jack confirmed. "But the first time you call me Sir, you are so expelled from this little shopping trip."

"Don't believe him." Daniel advised her in a stage whisper. "He needs your opinion about what to buy as much as Cameron does."

"I'll keep that in mind." Madison replied. "Though I am not sure I would be of much help."

"Sure you will be." O'Neill confirmed. "I know you know Carter and Vala, so you will be perfect."

"Wait, who's wanting to marry Carter?" Madison asked startled as those names were thrown out. "If you say you Jackson I will kill you with a paperclip and take it with me on the Ronald Regan and drop it in the Laurentian Abyss as we pass."

"Oh no. He is buying a ring for Princess." Cameron informed her with a smirk. "He only just decided to buy one, what was it 10 minutes ago now Jack?"

"Yeah about that." Jack confirmed looking at his watch.

"Well then. It is a good thing I ran into you. It's also a good thing, Carly introduced me to Sam and Vala on Saturday and we were browsing through jewelry stores." Parker commented and heads to Tiffany's. "Now they all have a specific ring they like, and all three rings are at Tiffany's." turning back to them noticing they are following with dumbfounded looks on their faces. "I am about to make this the shorted shopping trip you have ever made."

The four make their way to Tiffany's, which just happened to be on the other side of the mall.

"So I guess we are abandoning our original battle plan of browsing then huh?" Daniel asks.

"Yeah sure, you betcha." Jack confirms. "Of course if we don't like the rings we can always still look, but that look on her face tells me that we are going to like what they have picked out."

"Oh you can bet on that." Mitchell confirms. "That girl has a photographic memory, and a way to read people. She'll know when they are saying they like something for appearances sake, and when they genuinely like something. I am glad we ran into her."

"I'll reserve judgment for after I see the rings in question." O'Neill comments. "If she is as good as you say she is, I'll have to see about getting her transferred to the SGC."

"She might not accept until after her tour on the Regan Sir." Mitchell commented. "She has been looking forward to this cruise ever since she was informed she was selected."

"How long is her cruise for?" O'Neill asked, not that perturbed Mitchell called him sir. After quite a few conversations with the man he has come to realize that when it comes to work conversations, he will lapse back to Military courtesy and he has learned to accept it.

"6 months." Mitchell informed him. "She may be receptive to an offer if you approach with 5 weeks left. It will also depend on the way you present the offer to her."

"What do you think would be the best way to do that?" Jack wanted to know as they caught up with her at the entrance to Tiffany's.

"I'll tell more later." Mitchell advised.

As the quartet enter the jewelers, they are greeted by a gentleman that Jack estimated to be in his late 30's early 40's.

"Madison, back so soon? Where are your friends?" The gentleman asked.

"They are all at work." Madison easily lied. "I have brought their boyfriends to view the rings they were looking at."

"Excellent!" The gentleman clapped his hands together in glee. "You, gentlemen, are about to make three of the most amazing women I have ever met the happiest women in the Universe." He turns around and calls out to one of his CSR's. "Kelly, get the Princess collection set up in the Royal viewing room. If you gentlemen would follow me please, we will take you to a private viewing room where the collection of rings your ladies were very interested in will be brought to you for your inspection."

"What is your name?" O'Neill asked, in an almost hostile tone.

"Ah, forgive me. My name is Joshua Claybourne. I am the owner of this store." The gentleman introduced himself, as he let them into the Royal viewing room. "Kelly is actually my wife."

"Joshua is a big flirt. Very harmless." Kelly stated as she walked into the room with a very small collection of rings. "In this business you sometimes have to be to get the best results for your customers. It was very amusing to watch him interact with Vala."

"It doesn't bother you that he flirts with women all day long?" Daniel asked, quite shocked.

"Oh he doesn't flirt with everyone." Kelly explained. "Just those he knows will be receptive and flirt back without any expectation of it going anywhere."

"And with that I will take my leave. Madison would you care to join me on the main floor and allow these gentlemen to make their purchases in private?" Joshua asked.

"Absolutely." Madison agreed.

"Wait a minute." Cameron called out. "How are we to know who liked what ring if Mads is not here to tell us?"

"That is quite simple." Joshua remarked. "You Col. Mitchell will be shown all the rings adored by the Lovely Dr. Carolyn Lam," Joshua states looking directly at Cam, then turns to Daniel, "You, Dr. Jackson, will be shown the collection created by the Jubilant Vala Mal Doran, and You Gen. O'Neill will be shown all the rings that suit the personality of the exceptional Col. Dr. Samantha Carter."

"Okay that was creepy." Daniel commented, a little scared that Joshua seemed to know them and who they were buying rings for.

"How is it that you know our names, and who we are buying for when I know that no names have been mentioned?" O'Neill wanted to know, wondering if maybe there was a security breech that hadn't been caught.

"Your ladies spent 4 hours in my store on Saturday General." Joshua explained. "They even showed pictures of the three of you."

"They all left quite an impression on us." Kelly interjected. "Vala even helped several customers make purchases that probably would have left the store dissatisfied with the whole experience. Joshua was actually thinking about offering her a job here, should she ever become bored at her current job."

"Having met Dr. Jackson though, I know that luring her away from her current job will most likely not happen anytime soon." Joshua lamented. "Oh well. My loss is the Air Force's gain."

"Just how much did she make for you on Saturday?" Daniel wanted to know.

"Rough estimate, I would say anywhere between 25 and 30 thousand." Kelly guessed as she finished laying out the rings in front of the three. All three of them just stared at her. "So going with the going rate of 5 for commissions for our employee's she would have earned between 1250 to 1500 in the 3 hours she was helping people."

"Wow." Cameron was in awe. "I think princess missed her calling."

"How many people did she help purchase the rings they were looking at?" Daniel wanted to know, almost scared to here the answer. The question threw both Joshua and Kelly.

"Probably about 6 or 7." Kelly remarked. "I don't think she used any of her own money, just agreed to sign if they needed a co-signer to make the payments. When we talked to her about the commission she should receive for helping with the sales, she just stated that if for any reason they did default on a payment to use that money towards their loans."

"Now if you gentlemen will excuse me, there are customer's waiting to be served." With that Joshua left the room.

"Madison why don't you stay here and help these gentlemen while I go help Joshua." Kelly suggested.

"Sure." Madison agreed. With that Kelly also left the room.

All three men were speechless after hearing what Vala did on Saturday.

"No wonder she was in such a good mood when she returned to base on Saturday." Daniel remarked.

"Don't worry, this room is completely bug proof." Madison commented when she saw the look Jack sent Daniel for that comment. "They get a lot of high profile clients in here who are looking to make an anonymous purchase. Joshua's father is a Navy Admiral attached to NMCC."

"Admiral Morgan Claybourne?" Jack asked.

"The one and the same." Madison confirmed. "Any one with Military ID only has to pay 10 of the retail price when they shop here. Josh is a Naval Reserve Lieutenant. Went Reserve instead of resigning to please the old man. I suggest you look at the rings if you want my help. I have to leave within the next 20 minutes."

The guys spent the next 30 minutes going over the rings set before them. Madison left after 20 for her appointment with some suggestions as to which is the best ring for them to buy, mainly hinting at the ones Carolyn, Vala, and Sam loved the most.

"I can honestly say I am surprised at the selection Vala made." Daniel remarks after having finally picked the one Madison suggested. "There is not one gaudy ring here."

"What surprises me is that Parker didn't help Mitchell pick out a ring." Jack commented.

"That's because I knew which one to buy the moment I saw the collection of rings here." Mitchell stated showing them the ring. "This Emerald cut Three stone in platinum. I think I am going to get this matching band with the baguette diamonds to accompany it."

"Oh definitely." Jack exclaims. "I definitely like that combination. I'm getting Carter a plain wedding band to match this Oval Stone cut." Showing the ring to the two men.

"Yep, she'll definitely like that." Mitchell agreed, with Daniel nodding his head to show his agreement as well. "What about you Jackson, what are you getting your Princess?"

"This round cut ring with the Sapphires surrounding it." Daniel showed them. "I'll get the band that comes with it with the diamonds and sapphires alternating."

"Oh the princess will really love that." Mitchell exclaims.

"It is exquisite." Jack agrees. "It's a good thing our ladies did not want the same ring for their first choice."

"No kidding." Daniel concurred.

"Alright, lets find Joshua and purchase these rings so we can get out of the mall." Jack decrees getting up from his chair to head to the door. Just as Jack pushed the chair back up to the table Joshua walked into the room.

"Are you all set?" Joshua asked.

"Yes we are." Jack informed him. All three showed him which rings they were looking to get. "Excellent choices. All of the rings are in the ladies sizes so all is in order. Just let me ring up your purchase. If I may have the Credit Cards you will be using to pay for these I will be back with the receipts momentarily."

"Charge all three sets to this card." Jack demands, as he hands over the card the President had given him the day before.

Joshua turned to confirm with both Jackson and Mitchell that this was correct. Upon receiving confirmation, Joshua leaves the room and goes to close the transaction. Both he and Kelly return 1 minute later with the receipt for Jack to sign, as well as 6 boxes for the rings. As soon as Jack signed the slip and handed it back to Joshua, Kelly had all 6 rings were in their boxes and handed them over to their respective owners.

"You made excellent selections." Kelly commented. "Those particular rings that were chosen were the ladies first choice. I wish you all the happiness in the world."

"Thank you Ma'am." Mitchell responded with emotion.

The three men had returned to the truck, when Jack really looked at the receipt to see how much he paid. He was stunned to see the actual price they were charged.

"He only charged us 10 of the price of the rings." Jack exclaimed.

"Well that is what Madison told us he would charge us." Daniel commented.

"Jack don't worry about it." Mitchell stated. "Let's just go home and get ready for tonight. If you want to discuss the prices charged with Joshua I suggest you do it after we've left for Orilla."

"Oh for crying out loud Mitchell." Jack ranted as he started the truck and pulled out of the parking lot. "Do you realize how much he lost by not charging us full price?"

"Why do you care Jack?" Daniel asked. "It's not like you are paying for it. The American people are. Do you really want them to pay full price for these rings?"

Jack thought about that before replying. "You're right Daniel. Now if I was paying for it out of my own pocket, we would be marching right back to that store and having words with the good Lt."

They spent the ride back to the mountain discussing the best ways to approach Parker, if she qualified for the program.

"Why don't you talk to the Admiral about it and see what he says if you still want to pay full price?" Mitchell suggests about the charges for the rings after Daniel had left, as he gets out of the truck in the parking lot to get his car to go home and get ready for tonight. "You don't have to give him full details just enough to explain the situation."

"I'll think about it." Jack replied. "Have a good trip. I almost wish I was going with you."

"So do we Sir." Mitchell concurs.

A/N - I don't know if they actually do that at Tiffany & Co or not. Since this is fan fiction I figure anything goes so I decided to put in that little twist.


	6. Chapter 6

Ch 6

Approximately 2 hours later, Sam, Vala and Carolyn are seen exiting The Fudge Factory laden with bags from various shops. Each of the friends is eating a Caramel Apple, Vala's is drizzled in dark and white chocolate, Sam's is covered in nuts, and Carolyn's is just caramel.

"I can't believe you got your's plain Carolyn." Vala exclaimed. "This is absolutely heavenly."

"I didn't want the caramel to be overpowered by nuts or chocolate." Carolyn explained. "Besides, the candy apple I have for later will be 10x better than this."

"Do you think the hand will be ready by now?" Sam asks as they are still standing on the sidewalk in front of the Fudge Factory.

"Let's go check." Vala suggested. "Besides we could always browse the store before checking. We really didn't explore that store too much."

"That sounds like a plan." Carolyn agreed.

The three friends headed down to the Fun Factory in silence, happily munching on their apples. They enter the store and head to the wax counter to check on Carolyn's hand. They noticed Jennifer was taking the hand off some wax paper, and was wiping off the bottom of the hand, so decided to explore the store before retrieving the hand. They were walking through the store pointing out the different things that were available when they came up to the sale section.

"Hey Sam. Come check out these shirts for sale." Carolyn called. Sam and Vala walked over to where Carolyn was standing. "There are different Homer shirts that he would get a kick out of."

"I like this one." Vala told them. She was holding up a dark blue one that said 'I am so SMRT'.

"OH me too." Sam replied. "Do they have an X-Large?"

"Here you go." Vala hands over an X-Large shirt.

They noticed Carolyn had wandered over to the picture frames and candle holders, and went to join her.

"I like this one." Carolyn shows them one that spells out 'family' 3 picture frames hanging below it. "I think I am going to get this one."

"I am going to get this one." Sam says, holding one that spells 'love'. "You should get one as well Vala."

"Yes but which one?" Vala asks.

"Get 'love' as well." Carolyn suggested, handing a second one to Vala. "I should probably tell you that I didn't put down can't wait to meet you daddy to be written on the hand. I decided to go with 'Baby's first picture'."

"Why?" Sam asked, curious about the change.

"Well, as I was watching her make it, I realized this would be something that we could potentially have for a really long time. Especially if he wants to keep it in either his office or mine at work." Carolyn explains. "It would look really weird to see the same thing everyday with different pictures in it as the baby grows up. This way I have an excuse to keep the same picture in it without having to change it."

"Makes sense." Vala replied. "Shall we go see if it is finished?"

The three of them walk over to the end of the wax counter, by the cashier, where another girl was making a hand for a couple. Jennifer turned around and noticed them standing at the end of the counter, grabbed Carolyn's hand out of a drawer, and brought it over to them.

"So this is how it turned out." Jennifer said showing them the hand.

"Oh I like it." Carolyn confirmed, accepting the hand to inspect it closer. "This is definitely worth the money we paid for it. Thank you." She hands the hand back to Jennifer to be put in the box they asked for.

Once she has finished boxing it up, she places the box in a bag and hands it to Carolyn.

"When you go to clean it use a dry cloth only, no water or cleaning products or you will strip the glaze. Keep it away from any direct sun light, and any major heat source, which includes a fireplace mantle, TV, Stereo, and such."

"You will definitely have to make sure it stays in your office if you take it to base because none of the cleaners will go in it for fear of incurring your wrath." Vala joked, and Carolyn and Sam laughed at the thought. "Thank you for all your help Jennifer."

"You're welcome." Jennifer replied. "Y'all have a safe trip home."

"Thank you." Sam replied as they made their way to the counter to pay for the T-Shirt and the picture frames.

As the items were being wrung up, Carolyn's cell phone rang. She motioned to Sam and Vala that she was going to start heading outside to take the call.

"Hey you. I was just thinking about you." Carolyn answered having heard the special ring tone set up for Cameron.

"All good thoughts I hope." Cameron replied, with a hint of a joking undertone in his voice.

"Nothing but." Carolyn replied in the same manor. "Will you still be able to get away tonight, or will I have to call dad and get him to order you off the base."

"No, I was able to leave about an hour ago." Cameron told her, not wanting to give to much away without actually lying. He did leave the base an hour ago, after having already bought the rings. "I figured we could have a night in, just the two of us, at my place. We could order in some Chinese, put on a CD, and dance the night away without having to get dressed up and find a place where we will be able to fit on a dance floor."

"Sounds perfect." Carolyn said with a soft smile on his face. "What time do you want me to show up?"

"Nu'uh. I will pick you up as if we were going out, say around 2000." Cameron replied. "How about you spend the night as well. That way all you have to do is sleep in the spare room if you get too tired to want to go home."

"I would like that." Carolyn confirmed. "See you at 2000." They say goodbye and hang up.

By this time Sam and Vala had joined her on the sidewalk, and could tell by the smile on her face that she was talking to their team leader, as it is the same smile he would wear when talking about or to her.

"Shall we head home ladies?" Vala asked. "I don't know about you but I want to see that baby as soon as possible."

Carolyn and Sam laugh at Vala's enthusiasm and start walking up the hill to where they parked their car. It took them 45 minutes to get back to the hanger that was secure for them to beam up. Once they were in position they radioed Marks that they were ready.

When they were beamed back aboard the Odyssey they were once again greeted by Maj. Marks.

"Welcome back Col., Vala, Doctor. I take it you had a pleasant afternoon?" Marks commented, taking note of all the bags they had.

"We had a marvelous afternoon Peter." Vala informed him. She went digging through one of her many bags, and pulled out a shot glass. "Here, this is for you. I remembered how you said you collect them so I thought I would get you one as a thank you."

"No thanks is necessary." Marks commented, remembering how Col. Davis told her about the multiple requests sent to the President and thought this present was in thanks of that. "We all were just doing what we thought was right."

"Just how many of the crew sent requests?" Vala questioned, catching on to what Marks said, realizing she was addressing one of her supporters.

"I'm not sure of the exact number from the Odyssey, but our crew wasn't the only crew that submitted requests, as we rotate between the Odyssey and the Daedlus. Not to mention the members who transferred from the SGC to Atlantis ." Marks commented.

"Well, make sure to give everyone my thanks." Vala instructed him. "Tell them as well that I want to thank each of them personally, so you had better have a list of names for me for our journey to Orilla."

"I will." Marks promised. "Are all of you going back to Colorado Springs, or are you going straight to Washington Colonel?"

"If you could beam all three of us to my place, Major, that would be great." Sam requested. "I'll contact you with this same radio when I am ready to beam over to Washington."

"Not a problem Col. Col. Davis mentioned that you might want to do that and we are authorized to help you in any way we can." Marks confirmed. "You ladies enjoy the rest of your day." With that Marks beamed the three of them to Sam's basement.

--

"I think you shouldn't object when she asks if it is a date." Cameron advises Daniel, while moving around his living room setting up everything for his date with Carolyn.

"_Don't you think she will suspect something if I do that?" Jackson asked ._

"Isn't that what you want?" Cameron asks, while switching his phone from one ear to the other. "You already stated that you are ready to take things with her to the next level. Start with little things and work your way up. Don't mention this is what you are doing, make it seem like a natural progression in your relationship. If she questions your intentions, don't deny where you want things to go, just don't volunteer that information."

"_I hope you're right about this." Daniel comments._

"Hey if you don't want my advise, don't call me asking for it." Cameron replied indignant. "You could always call Sam or Jack for it if you don't like what I am telling you."

"_Do you know how much Jack would tease me about this?" Daniel questions. "He would assume I have lost my mind and should just go straight to the engagement."_

"You're probably right." Mitchell agrees. "Did your princess mention when they would be getting back?"

_"You mean you didn't ask Carolyn?" Daniel asks._

"No. That thought didn't cross my mind." Cameron admits. "I was too preoccupied running over the plans for tonight to remember to ask that question. I just know that I will be picking her up at 2000 at her house."

"_I thought you decided you were going to have a night in at your place?" Daniel wonders._

"Oh we are." Cameron confirms. "I'm just going to pick her up so she doesn't have to drive. She is okay with it, so there shouldn't be an issue."

"What are you going to do for food then?" Daniel wanted to know. Daniel is sitting in his office going over some last minute reports.

"_I was going to order in Chinese actually." Cameron stated, realizing that there would be a logistical issue with that._

"How about I pick up the food and set it up for you while you go pick her up." Daniel suggested. "That way the food will be all set out for you and you won't have to stop somewhere to pick it up, nor will the mood get spoiled at some point by the delivery guy."

_"That sounds like a plan Jackson." Cameron accepted the offer. "Thanks. So what plans have you set up for you and Princess?"_

"Well if she accepts, I have reservations set at 'Charles Court' for 8pm." Daniel explained, while looking at his watch. "I should probably call her and see if she wants to go out."

_"Yeah that would probably be a good idea." Cameron confirmed. "You know how she loves to primp. Did you have to book a room at the Broadmoor for that reservation?"_

"Yes I do, and yes I did. I booked a 2 bedroom suite for the night." Daniel said with a smile. "I'll talk to you tomorrow."

"_Yeah." Cameron concurred. "See you in the gate room for that ceremony tomorrow afternoon."_

"Have you been able to find out what that's about?" Daniel asked.

"_Nope. Probably should have asked Jack that one." Cameron replied._

"Yeah probably." Daniel agree. "Bye."

"_Later."_

After hanging up the phone, Daniel saves the file he was working on, and puts the documents away that he was using for his research. Once everything is secured for the night, he grabs his cell phone and calls Vala.

"Hello Darling." Vala answers.

"Hey. How was your day?" Daniel asks as he locks up his office.

"Oh it was great. You really are going to have to take me to Niagara Falls for a week once we get back. It really is a lovely place to visit." Vala shamelessly flirts with him hoping to get some kind of response.

"I'll think about it." Daniel chuckles, knowing that he most likely will be requesting time off for both of them in the near future to do just what she asked. "Would you like to go out for dinner tonight, instead of staying on the base?"

"That sounds marvelous." Vala agreed. "Where are you taking me?"

"Well, I was thinking of 'Charles Court'. A friend mentioned it has really good food and I thought you would like to try it with me." Daniel informed her.

"I would love to." Vala replied with a smile that lit her eyes.

"Great. I'll pick you up at 7:30pm." Daniel told her.

"I'll be ready." Vala confirmed as she hung up her phone. Sam and Carolyn both looked at her waiting for an explanation. "Daniel is taking me out tonight to a place called 'Charles Court'. Have either of you heard of it?"

They just started at her with rounded eyes and mouths open in shock.

"Charles Court? One of the restaurants at the Broadmoor?" Sam asked.

"I don't know, he didn't mention." Vala replied a little nervous now. "Why?"

"The Broadmoor is a resort. You usually have to have a reservation as the resort to be able to dine at one of their restaurants." Carolyn explained as they were walking up to the Radiology department at the Air Force Academy Hospital, where the ultrasound would be performed. "Daniel must mean this to be a date, or he wouldn't be talking you to Charles Court."

"I agree." Sam said, looking at her watch. "Okay it is 1730 now and he will be picking you up at what time?"

"1930." Vala replied starting to panic. "I'm not going to get ready on time."

"Sure you will." Carolyn argued. "The ultrasound shouldn't take more that 20 minutes. It's closer to my place than it is to either the base or Sam's so we will go back there. Madison is still staying at my place and you are about the same size as her so I'm sure she will have no problems letting you borrow something. Just call Daniel and tell him to pick you up there instead of the base."

"Right. Good idea." Vala said still unsure if she will be able to get ready on time.

By this time they were in the area where Carolyn would be able to have her ultrasound done. Carolyn tells the technician to let Vala borrow the phone to call Daniel about the change of pick up location, while she is getting ready for the ultrasound.

"Are you sure all the beaming we did today won't have an affect on the baby?" Sam questioned Carolyn about this again. She had never run into this problem.

"Yes I am sure." Carolyn confirmed. "Do you remember Lt. Claybourne from SG-13?" Sam nodded. "Well she was beamed from P4X-257 while they were in the middle of a fire fight last year when she was 2 weeks pregnant. That was only the first time during her pregnancy that she was beamed up. There has been no adverse affect to her little guy. Which everyone is thankful for."

"Well then that settles it." Vala proclaimed. "Asgard beaming does not affect a pregnant woman. Let it be Sam. Besides Cameron knows all about Rebecca's pregnancy and the beaming throughout it."

"Well, we are ready." The technician informed them. "This ultrasound really should have been done at the SGC Carolyn. You know your dad will hear about this."

"I know. But if it was done on base, he would have heard about it before Cameron and I want him to know about it first." Carolyn replied. "Lets get this show on the road."

The technician placed the gel on Carolyn's abdomen, which caused Carolyn to shiver, then placed the wand on her belly and begins the examination.

"Okay. Everything looks good. I'll just print out a couple of copies for you and the Col." The technician informed her. "How many do you want exactly?"

"Better print out 6 just in case I missed someone." Carolyn requested after a brief internal head count.

"Here you go." The technician handed her the 6 copies after they printed out just as she finished putting her shirt back on.

"Thank you for your help." Carolyn replied. "Remember to not file the information until 1900. That way my dad won't see the report until tomorrow afternoon at the earliest."

"Will do. Take care." The technician waved to them as they left.

"Okay. So Daniel will be picking me up at 1930 at your place, Cameron will be picking you up 30 minutes later. And you Sam will be heading to Washington." Vala summarized their plans for the evening. "How about we set up a conference call for tomorrow at 1500hrs to update everyone on how their night went."

"I like that idea Vala." Sam agreed.

"Me too. Although I am not sure I can wait that long to let you guys know his reaction." Carolyn commented.

"Patience is a virtue apparently." Vala stated. "I have faith that Cameron will keep you completely occupied until the appointed time. No matter what activity he has planned."

The three friends made their way to the parking lot in silence, each contemplating what would happen tonight. They discussed different possibilities of what could be going through Daniel's head, but none of them could be sure and Sam and Carolyn didn't want to give Vala false hope.

As they arrived at Carolyn's Sam turned to Vala. "You know, you might want to have a bag paced for tonight just in case. Pete wanted to take me to Charles Court once but couldn't because he wasn't a guest of the resort. Now they may make an exception for Daniel because of his affiliation with the Air Force, but they may not."

"What should I pack?" Vala asked. She didn't want to pack what she normally would in a situation like this, not that she could, and wanted to know the best course of action in case they just ended up back at Daniel's or the base.

"Pack the pajama set you bought in Niagara Falls in the tote you bought, and also take the Eagle you bought him." Carolyn suggested. "That way he can't try to be indignant about what you brought."

"Good idea." Sam agreed. "In this case, less may very well mean more for you."

"Okay." Vala said while exhaling a deep breath. "I can do this. Let's go get me ready. Are you coming Samantha, or are you going to head back home?"

"I'm going to head home. It's 1830 now so you have an hour before he gets here." Sam informed them. "Good luck you two."

"Thanks." Carolyn and Vala said at the same time as they got out of Sam's car and headed inside.

Sam drove home, and took her stuff inside. She decided it would be a better idea to beam over from the base as she was supposed to be there until they left anyway. She didn't want any unwanted questions being asked by the presence of her car at her house. After arriving on base she made her way to the control room to let Walter know she would be leaving from the base instead of her basement.

Walter put the call it to the Odyssey to let them know that Col Carter was ready for beam up. Soon Sam was engulfed in the typical white light that is seen just prior to a person being beamed up by either the Odyssey, the Daedlus, or the Apollo. After a quick conversation with Major Marks, Sam found herself in the basement of Jack's townhouse, in the historic district of Georgetown. She didn't let Jack know she was coming early, but was sure that Walter already called him to let him know she was there.

As she made her way up the basement stairs, she could smell the wonderful aroma of some great Italian takeout. Upon reaching the dining room Sam was stunned speechless by what she saw.

There were candles lit, the lights were on low, there were several bouquets of her favorite flowers, and Jack putting the finishing touches on the table.

"Hi. I didn't expect you for another half hour at least." Jack greeted her, as he walked over to give her a kiss. "Danny boy told me how he planned on taking Vala out tonight."

Sam didn't respond. Her eyes were glued to a little blue box that sat beside her plate. Jack followed her gaze, and almost kicked himself for not putting it away when Walter called.

"Jack?"

--

A/N - sorry it took a few days to post. A few shifts became available at work, and I took a couple to help out. It took me a while to get the time line right for this chapter as there is a lot of back and forth's. Let me know if it makes sense. Also I don't know if the information about the Broadmoor and Charles Court is accurate - they are real places in Colorado Springs, I've just never been. It looks really beautiful and has been added to my list of places to see.


	7. Chapter 7

Ch 7

"You know I love you right?" Jack asked. Sam still hadn't taken her eyes off that little blue box that was sitting on the table. "You mean more to me than anything else in the world. I can't imagine my life without you."

Jack noticed that there were tears starting to form in Sam's eyes. Jack walked up behind her, slid his arms around her waist, and pulled her to him. Sam just leaned back into him and put her arms on top of his as if to keep him there, but she never took her eyes off that box.

"This isn't a trick, nor is it an hallucination. I am so in love with you, the only way I can see myself as whole is with you in my life." Jack slowly turned her around in his arms. When he had her facing him is when she finally turned her gaze to him. What she saw in his eyes just made the tears fall freely down her cheeks. "Marry me. Make me that happiest man in the known universe."

Sam couldn't believe this was happening. Here was the man she has dreamed about marrying for the past 9 years making her dreams come true. All she could do was nod her head 'yes' as she couldn't make her voice work to speak the words that would let him know he has made her the happiest woman on the planet, no matter what Vala or Carolyn might say.

Upon seeing her nod of acceptance, Jack claimed her lips in a soul searing kiss that let her know just how happy she made him. He maneuvered her closer to the table so that he could grab the box and slip the ring on her finger. He broke off the kiss, as they both needed the air, just as he grabbed the box off the table.

"I have a confession to make." Jack informed her.

"What?" she asked with a laugh.

"Before you were beamed to Canada with Vala and Carolyn, I beamed over to Colorado Springs to buy this." Jack told her. "I wanted the opinions of your teammates on what ring to buy because I had no idea what your tastes would be. Just as we arrived at the mall, we ran into Mitchell's cousin, Lt Madison Parker. She helped a lot with the ring that is in this box."

With that Jack opened the box to show her the ring. Sam gasped as she look in the box. There sat the one ring that she would have demanded Jack buy for her if this day ever came. New tears sprang to her eyes and just streamed down her face she was so happy. Jack could tell he made the right purchase, and vowed then and there to do something for Parker to show her his appreciation for her help.

Jack slid the ring on Sam's finger, seeing for the first time how much the ring was made for her hand.

"So, what's for dinner?" Sam wanted to know.

"Well, I was thinking of pasta, with an alfredo sauce, salad, Garlic Bread, with a nice wine." Jack replied. "As you can see I didn't have time to make it myself so I ordered from that little Italian place we love to go to."

"Wow." Sam turned accusing eyes on him. "You told them what you were planning didn't you?"

"It was the only way they would let me get takeout." Jack defended himself. "Besides I got them to agree to wait until Monday before finding out if you said yes. Let's eat before it goes to waste."

--

"I can't believe that you guys went to Niagara Falls for the afternoon just to do touristy things." Cameron exclaimed as he let Carolyn into his place. "That just seems so weird."

"Why does it seem weird? Sam has in's with a certain General who can authorize for us to be beamed from one place to another." Carolyn laughed as she took her coat off. "She simply made a call and flash, we were in Niagara Falls."

"It just does." Cameron said, leading her into the dining room. "I mean there are all kinds of touristy things to do here in Colorado Springs, and you three choose to go to Canada."

"Wow. Chinese." Carolyn commented. "You went all out. I hope this hasn't been sitting out since before you left to pick me up."

"No it hasn't." Cameron confirmed. "Jackson came by to set it up for us. He probably left about 15 minutes ago."

"You asked him to do this when he has a date with Vala set for tonight?" Carolyn turned on him with fire in her eyes.

"Hey, he volunteered to do it when I talked to him earlier before he called Vala and asked her out." Cameron defended himself. "Besides he had all the arrangements made for the date before he called me, so the man would know if he could do this and still make the reservations on time."

Carolyn just shook her head. "So where is that music you promised me?"

Cameron just grinned and headed over to the entertainment unit to put on the CD he made for this evening. The first song to come through the speakers was Lonestar's "Amazed". Carolyn smiled at the choice as they sat down to eat dinner.

"So what did you do all day locked up in the mountain?" Carolyn asked.

"Actually, Jackson and I split not long after you girls did." Cameron told her. "Jack beamed into town, and wanted us to go shopping with him."

"What did he want to go shopping for?" Carolyn asked curious.

"A ring." Cameron replied. They ate in silence for a few minutes while Carolyn digested this information.

"He's going to propose?" Carolyn asked slightly shocked.

"Yep." Cameron confirmed. "Not sure when though. It might be before we leave, it might be after we get back."

They talked about how her parents were doing as they finished their meal. The song changed to Tim McGraw's "It's your Love", and Cameron just held his hand out to Carolyn. She accepts his hand, he pulls her up from her chair and leads her to the living room where he takes her in his arms and starts dancing with her.

_Dancin' in the dark  
Middle of the night  
Takin' your heart  
And holdin' it tight_

Emotional touch  
Touchin' my skin  
And askin' you to do  
What you've been doin' all over again

Oh, it's a beautiful thing  
Don't think I can keep it all in  
I just gotta let you know  
What it is that won't let me go

It's your love  
It just does somethin' to me  
It sends a shock right through me  
I can't get enough  
And if you wonder  
About the spell I'm under  
oh It's your love

Better than I was  
More than I am  
And all of this happened  
By takin' your hand

And who I am now  
Is who I wanted to be  
And now that we're together  
I'm stronger than ever  
I'm happy and free

Oh, it's a beautiful thing  
Don't think I can keep it all in, no  
And if you asked me why I changed  
All I gotta do is say your sweet name

It's your love  
It just does somethin' to me  
It sends a shock right through me  
I can't get enough  
And if you wonder  
About the spell I'm under  
oh It's your love  


As the song comes to the instrumental towards the end of the song, Cameron reaches into his pocket to pull out the little blue box that holds the ring he purchased earlier that day. As he stops their little dance, Carolyn looks at him with searching eyes, then notices the little blue box as he flips it open, and drops to one knee.

_  
Oh, baby _

"Carolyn you are my life. I can't imagine my future without you in it. I love you so much. Will you marry me?" Cameron asked. "Will you be my lover, my best friend, the mother of my children?"

Tears are streaming down Carolyn's face. All she can do is nod 'Yes' she is so over come with love for the man kneeling in front of her. The smile that overtakes Cameron's face could only be described as pure sunshine. As he stood up she was finally able to silently say "Yes!" He slipped the ring out of the box and put it on her finger then brought her in for a soul searing kiss, and starts the dance again.

_Oh, it's a beautiful thing  
Don't think I can keep it all in  
I just gotta let you know  
What it is that won't let me go_

It's your love  
It just does somethin' to me  
It sends a shock right through me  
I can't get enough  
And if you wonder  
About the spell I'm under  
oh It's your love  
It's your love  
It's your love  


As they continue dancing and trading kisses the song changes to Rascal Flatts 'God Bless the Broken Road'. As this song came to a close, Carolyn decided that now would be a good time to give Cameron her gift, but she didn't want to leave his arms just yet. She loved being there, and wanted to stay in them for the rest of her life.

"I bought something for you today, well actually I made something for you." Carolyn told him as she looked up into his eyes. "It's in my bag."

"You sit on the couch and I'll go get your bag." Cameron said as he started to move away from her.

"Just get the white bag out and bring it over here." Carolyn instructed him, turning off the music before going to sit on the couch.

When Cameron opened her bag he saw the white bag she was referring to on top. Grabbing just that bag, he walked back over to where she was sitting on the couch. Not sure what to make of it, he took the box out of the bag and just stared at it. On the top of the box, was a card for Safekeeping Instructions of a Wax Hand. He looked up at her with confusion. At her prodding he opened the box.

There staring up at him was the hand she made, complete with the ultrasound picture lying on top of the hand. His breath caught in his throat as he realized what he was looking at. All he could do was stare at it. A lone tear trailed down the right side of his face. Carolyn brought her hand up to catch it before it dropped onto the picture.

Cameron looked up at her with hope in his eyes, praying that what he was seeing was a picture of their baby. More tears came to his eyes as he could not seem to form a coherent thought. Carolyn recognized the question in his eyes and nodded her head in the affirmative in response to it.

Tears started to form in her eyes as she watched his hand slowly make its way to the box, as if he was scared this was all an hallucination.

"It's real." Carolyn was able to vocally confirm after what felt like hours. "That is a picture of our baby taken just a couple hours ago."

Cameron very delicately moved the box to the coffee table with more care than Daniel used for his artifacts. He raises his hands to her face and softly caresses it as though he is memorizing every inch. After a few moments he brings her face towards him as he moves in to meet her half way and touches his forehead to hers, as what she has told him becomes a reality in his mind.

"I love you so much." Cameron declares. "I can't even begin to describe what I am feeling right now. I thought you made my night when you said 'Yes', but this, this definitely tops that." Carolyn gives a small laugh at that. "Thank you."

"You're welcome." Carolyn replied. "I wonder what my dad will say when he finds out about this."

"Oh I reckon he will be happy as long as you are happy." Cameron suggests. Carolyn leans back to study him for a moment.

"Cameron Mitchell do you know something I don't?" Carolyn questioned, already having an idea that her father may know more than he has let on.

"Maybe." Cameron confirms with a small guilty smile.

"Just what did you and my father talk about in your all important meeting two weeks ago?" Carolyn wanted to know. She had an idea that the conversation revolved around their relationship and realized that she wasn't upset about it.

"You." Cameron simply said, not wanting to go into detail right now about that conversation. He pulls her into an embrace as he wants nothing more than to hold her. "Do you think you could keep beaming to a minimum? I know Claybourne's kid isn't showing any adverse affects to all the beaming she did while she was pregnant, but I don't want to take the chance it's like Beckett's ATA Gene therapy."

"Most definitely." Carolyn agreed with a smile, not to surprised at the not so subtle subject change. "Today was Vala wanting to see the Falls, and giving us all an excuse to get out of the Springs before your long voyage."

They sat on the couch for a while longer, enjoying being in each others arms. They both know that this will be their last chance before Cameron leaves with the rest of his team on the Odyssey for Orilla, a voyage that will take minimum 2 months.

"Cameron?" Carolyn speaks after a while. "Will you hold me while I sleep tonight?"

"Anything for you sweetheart." Cameron agrees.

Looking at the clock, Cameron realizes they had been sitting their longer than he thought. He sat up and reached over to the hand and the ultrasound picture, and put the picture in the picture holder. He got up off the couch and picked up the hand. He then held his hand out to Carolyn. She put her hand in his to accept his help in getting up off the couch. Carrying the hand, he lead Carolyn to his room, stopping only to pick up her bag along the way. Once they reached his room, he placed her bag on the bed and let go of her hand so that she could get ready for bed, then made his way over to his dresser and put the hand where he would be able to stare at it while he held Carolyn in his arms.

**Disclaimer: I own only Lt Madison Parker. All other characters mentioned belong to whoever owns the Stargate franchise, and Tim McGraw owns his song. I just use them to appease my overactive imagination - it goes quiet every once in a while, not often though.**


	8. Chapter 8

Ch 8

"I can't believe that Jack beamed into town at the same time we beamed over to Niagara Falls." Vala exclaimed. They were sitting in a secluded corner so that they could talk about their day. "Who knew that he was planning that?"

"I certainly didn't." Daniel answered. "Mitchell was just as surprised. Landry must have known. He seemed relieved when Mitchell told him that we had already left. I'm still trying to wrap my head around the fact that the President let him expense the purchase."

"What do you mean?" Vala wanted to know.

"The President gave Jack a Credit Card to charge the rings to." Daniel explained. "And not just the rings he bought Sam. Jack said that the President also told him the charge the rings Mitchell bought for Carolyn to the same Credit Card."

"So essentially there was no limit as to how much they could spend on the rings?" Vala concluded.

"Pretty much." Daniel agreed.

"So, do you think that if you ever get around to asking me to marry you that the President will allow you to do the same?" Vala asked fishing for any information on what his true intentions are, hoping that he wants the same thing she does.

"Probably." Daniel replied with a small smile. "That would be something I would have to have Jack confirm though."

This surprised Vala. She was totally expecting him to deny that that would ever happen as this dinner is just two friends going out to dinner.

The surprise written on her face made Daniel ache a little. He really needs to get his act together and start showing her what she means to him. Daniel signals the waiter for the check so they can leave. When they arrived they agreed to use the suite that he booked for the night as neither really wanted to be alone. Once the check was settled they left the restaurant, holding hands, and headed to their suite.

"So, Daniel, just so you know, I don't put out on the first date." Vala teased him.

"Well that's good, because I wasn't going to ask you to." Daniel teased back. "I just had to book the room in order to get the reservation at the restaurant. It's a small price to pay for what turned out to be a very lovely dinner."

"Ah, so that is why it is a two bedroom suite then." Vala continued the banter that felt so good to have after all that has happened recently. She lets go of his hand and threads her arm through his, while he puts both of his hands in his pockets.

"Yeah pretty much." Daniel agrees. "Besides I thought you might like a night away from the base."

"I would. And I thank you for this."

They reached their room at this point. Daniel takes out his key, opens the door and ushers her into the room. Vala sees that their bags have been put away in the same room, but doesn't mention it to Daniel.

"Would you like something to drink?" Daniel asks her as he heads to the mini-bar in the room.

"Just some water if they have any." Vala replies.

Daniel pulls out two bottles of water, and hands one to her. They sit down on the couch and kick off their shoes. Vala moves around so that she can comfortably put her feet up on the couch while she is talking to him. He picks up her right foot and starts to massage it.

"I bought you something while we were in Niagara Falls." Vala tells him. "It is currently in my bag in the other room but I am too comfortable to get up and go get it for you."

"That's okay." Daniel replies. "You can always give it to me later."

"True." Vala agrees. A small moan of pleasure escapes her lips as Daniel is kneading the knots out of her foot. "Don't forget to do the other one when you are done with this one."

Daniel just smiles. He notices that she is starting to fall asleep as he continues his ministrations. After about 30 minutes he switches feet and notices that she has fallen asleep. He just continues to knead her foot until he felt all of the tension leave.

Once he was done, he got up, walked into the bedroom and turned down the bed. He walked back over to Vala, picked her up and carried her over to the bed. Knowing she would be uncomfortable sleeping in her dress, he walked over to her bag, and pulled out her pajama's. The selection that she brought slightly shocked him. He was expecting her to bring a baby doll or some other provocative outfit, instead she brought a cotton pajama set that was quite normal. Realizing there was no waking her up at this point, he methodically changed her from her dress to her pajama's without too much skin being revealed. He also noticed a stuffed Eagle in her bag when he pulled out her pajama's. Daniel wasn't sure what to make of it. The thing was really cute and reminded him a little of Vala.

Daniel decided it would be best to call it a night as he knew they would have to return to base for 1100hrs to get prepared for the ceremony the next afternoon. He wondered if Jack and Sam, and Cam and Carolyn were going to make it to the ceremony. He figured they would make the effort to do so, all things considered, but he wasn't sure if Sam would be able to convince Jack to come if she said 'Yes'.

Daniel mentally slapped himself upside the back of the head for thinking that. He knew Jack would be at this ceremony because, as Head of HomeWorld Security, his attendance was mandatory. As 2IC of the base, Cameron would be there as well.

That always intrigued Daniel. When Landry named Mitchell as 2IC, instead of Sam or even Reynolds, Daniel had questioned the wisdom of this. He had wondered what the General saw in the Lt. Col. After having worked with him for 5 months, especially after the Mission to the Sodan home world, he realized that Mitchell was the best candidate for the position. Jack started something when he named Mitchell as Leader of SG1.

After Daniel finished getting ready for bed, he went back into Vala's room to check on her one last time and to set her alarm for 0800, to give them plenty of time to get back to base in the morning. Upon entering he notices Vala appears to be caught up in a disturbing dream as she is tossing and turning in her bed. He quickly walks over to the bed to calm her down.

"Vala." Daniel called in a soothing voice. "Vala it's okay. I'm here."

Daniel takes her into his arms as she shoots up in her bed. Recognizing where she is, she turns into Daniel for comfort. Daniel notices tears falling down her cheeks when she presses against him and holds onto her tighter. He lays them both back down on the bed and continues to comfort her.

As he lays there holding her, he begins to see why she is up all hours of the night on base, and resolves to correct that. As he lets her go for a minute to roll over set the alarm on the nightstand beside the bed, Vala shoots up looking for him, thinking he was leaving.

"Daniel?" Vala questions. Daniel can hear the agony in her voice. He quickly set the alarm then turns back to her.

"Shh, I'm here." Daniel takes her back into his arms. "I was just setting the alarm so we are not late arriving on base tomorrow for the ceremony."

As they lay back on the bed, Vala rest her head on Daniel's chest so she can listen to his heart beating, and throws her arm around his waist to hold on. Daniel in turn pulls her tighter to him, and rests his head on top of hers.

"Do you know what the ceremony is about tomorrow?" Vala asks, wanting to see if he has any idea of what is going to be done.

"No. All we were told was that as SG-1 we were ordered by the President to be present at the ceremony in our most formal wear." Daniel told her. "Not that that order would have made a difference in what we would have worn. But I think the President means for Teal'c and I to wear Tux's. Not sure why though. Do you know the ceremony is about?"

"Col Davis told Samantha Carolyn and myself what it would be about when we first arrived in Niagara Falls without actually telling us." Vala told him. Remembering that the papers were still in her bag, she quickly pulled out of Daniel's embrace, raced to her bag, pulled out the envelope, and raced back to the bed sitting down this time instead of returning to Daniel's embrace. Upon seeing the happy expression on her face, Daniel sits up. She hands him the envelope. "Carolyn told us that I was going to be given the contents of this envelope during the ceremony. He didn't tell us we couldn't say anything when he gave this to me." Daniel pulled out all the documents and spreads them across the bed. "Carolyn said there would probably still be an official swearing in ceremony tomorrow."

She let Daniel peruse the documents in silence. She hadn't been able to go over it much since she received them, what with all the excitement that happened that afternoon. She knew that Sam Daniel Cameron and Teal'c would help her go over her cover story during the mission to Orilla. She could probably get everyone who supported her on board to help her as well.

Daniel was going over all the documents in amazement. He couldn't believe that he hadn't heard this would be happening. When he and Cameron had first approached the President with the proposal 3 months ago, they were told that it could take some time to work everything out with the IOA. They were still smarting that he approved Vala to be a full time member of SG-1 despite their recommendation against such action. Then Daniel read her 'adoption papers'. Understanding crossed his face when he read who her parents were named as.

Vala started to get worried about his reaction when he hadn't said anything after having watch the play of emotions that crossed his face.

"Daniel?" Vala inquired. "Is something wrong?"

Daniel's head shot up and he noticed the anxiety written on her face. "NO NO NO NO NO!" He exclaimed. "I'm just trying to figure out when and how this happened? When Mitchell and I approached the President three months ago, he told us it would take some time to debate and get the request approved." Daniel went back to looking over all the documents. "When did Landry get involved to this extent?"

Vala could see this was really puzzling Daniel and couldn't understand why. "Aren't you happy about this?"

"Of course I am." Daniel rushed to assure her. "I just can't believe it happened so quickly. We had talked about getting other people to help with the petition, but we never found the time to actually talk to anyone with everything that has been going on recently." He was reading through the cover story he was sure Jack set up when he absently said, "Maybe someone heard us talking about it in the commissary after that incident in Kansas. Still you would think that there would be whispers of this happening around base. Especially if Landry got involved."

"You mean you didn't push for this?" Vala asked, hurt.

"Do you remember when Mitchell and I were summoned to D.C. after we got back from Kansas?" Daniel asked. Vala nodded, not sure where this was going. "It was to explain to the President in detail why we submitted the proposal to grant you citizenship. We were in that meeting for 12 hours the first day, and another 5 hours the second pleading your case and submitting supporting evidence. We did as much pushing as we could. By the time we left we knew we had the President and the Joint Chiefs on our side. They advised us to leave it up to them to persuade the members of the IOA, as they knew they had to get the leaders of each country to agree before actually taking it to the committee."

Daniel was cut off in his explanation by the room's phone ringing.

"Dr. Jackson." Daniel answered the phone.

"Jackson why do you always answer the phone like that even when you are at home?" Mitchell asked in lieu of a greeting.

"Sorry habit." Daniel apologized without really explaining. "So how did it go?"

"Everything went according to plan up until after she said yes." Mitchell informed him. Daniel could tell that the deviation he hinted at was not a disappointing one.

"Really? What happened?" Daniel asked wanting to know. "And where is she right now that you are able to talk to me."

"She is in the bathroom." Cam replied. "She gave me this really cool present she made for me when the girls were in Niagara Falls. She made this hand holding a Picture holder." Daniel could hear the giddiness in Cameron's voice so he put the phone on speaker so Vala could hear as well. "There is some writing on it as well."

"What does it say?" Daniel prompted when Cameron trailed off.

"Baby's first picture." Cameron told him in a distracted tone as he also put his phone on speaker.

"Really?" Daniel asked surprised, not expecting that. "Carolyn is pregnant?"

"Yep." Mitchell confirmed. "Where do you think we should keep it? At the base or here?"

"I think you should keep it at home until you decide to let everyone on base know then bring it to work and display it in the General's office." Vala suggested.

"You aren't surprised about this are you?" Daniel asked.

"Nope." Vala confirmed with a small smile. "Samantha and I were with Carolyn today when she had her ultrasound performed."

"In fact it was Vala's idea to have the hand made." Carolyn commented upon her return. "I like your idea Vala, although we should probably tell Dad tomorrow before he reads the report about it."

"Oh did you tell Cameron what you know about the ceremony tomorrow yet?" Vala asked her 'sister'.

"It actually slipped my mind." Carolyn confessed. "What with getting engaged and all."

"I heard." Vala exclaimed. "Congratulations!"

"Thanks." Carolyn accepted. "You should probably tell Cameron what will be happening tomorrow so he doesn't feel so left out. I take it you told Daniel?"

"Yes I did." Vala confirmed. "I even showed him the documents."

"What documents?" Cameron asked confused and irritated to be uninformed. "Jackson what the heck are they yammerin' about?"

"Our meeting with the President 3 months ago panned out." Daniel put simply.

"Seriously?" Cameron exclaimed.

"Oh yeah." Daniel told him. "Came complete with background cover story. They are also setting her up with a house near Sam's."

"Wow." Was all Cameron could say. "This is definitely something to add to the celebrations. Wait, if you already have the documents, are we still going to have the ceremony tomorrow?"

"Most likely." Carolyn stated. "Davis didn't actually swear her in as a citizen, just gave her the papers and some basic information about what she has been given. Besides from what dad told me, the President wants to personally see Vala be sworn in as a citizen in front of everyone. There will be certain people who will be allowed into the 'Gate room."

"Who will they be?" Cameron asked.

"Those at the SGC who petitioned for Vala to be given citizenship." Carolyn stated.

"How did the President convince the IOA not to fight this?" Cameron wanted to know.

"General Landry claimed me as his daughter." Vala enthused. Daniel reached over and pulled Vala into a hug. Vala snuggled further into his arms content to be within their grasp again, and wanting to stay there for the rest of her life.

"Seriously?" This surprised Cameron. He wasn't aware the General knew about their petition.

"Yeah, who would have thought that the SGC gossip vine could have kept something like this quiet?" Daniel commented.

"Well obviously this is something that they wanted to happen." Cameron commented. "What better way to throw it in all the non-Vala whacko's faces that the President likes her better than to spring this on them." Both men fell silent as they noticed their ladies were starting to fall asleep. They were thinking about all that had been revealed during the past 15 minutes and the changes that will be made at work. After a few moments of silence Cameron asked the question that was plaguing both of them. "Do we know who else supported Princess with this?"

"Not yet." Daniel answered after Vala shook her head. "We will find out who some of them are tomorrow though."

"True." Cameron looked down at Carolyn who had fallen asleep in his arms. "We should continue this conversation tomorrow. What time does Teal'c get back?"

"Some time between 1100 and 1200 tomorrow. We plan on being back for 1100 so we can be there when he arrives." Daniel replied. "When will you two be arriving at the mountain?"

"Probably around the same time. I left my Class-A's in my quarters on base so I'll need to change there before the ceremony." Cameron informed him. "We'll talk more while we wait for Teal'c."

"Alright.." Daniel agreed. "Nite."

"Nite." Cameron hung up the phone, reset his alarm so they could get up an hour earlier, and settled down for the night.

After Daniel hung up the phone, he repositioned both he and Vala before succumbing to sleep with the thought that Cameron didn't razz him for Vala being in the same room as him.

Across town General Landry had just gotten off the phone with his wife, having confirmed with the President that she was to be given full security clearance for the program considering that she would now be Vala's adoptive mother. Landry thought it was crucial that she have clearance so that Vala would not have to sensor what she said around her. The President confirmed for him that his wife did in fact pass the psychological exam required for civilians who wanted to enter the program, and she even appeared to have the right credentials to even be given a job within the program if she wanted one.

He made arrangements to pick her up at 0800 tomorrow so they could arrive on base earlier than the others, so that he could explain the program to her and the role her daughter played within the program. He was happy with this arrangement, as he would now be able to talk to her about everything, and not have to sensor his work from their marriage.

He got ready for bed with a smile on his face, knowing that tomorrow would be the start of something new for all of them.


	9. Chapter 9

_**A/N: sorry for the delay. It has taken forever and a few drafts to get to this point. This is as good as it gets for now. Not sure if the next chapter will be the ceremony of not. Hope you enjoy. On with the 'show'.**_

_Ch 9_

_Vala was in her quarters on base trying to get ready for the ceremony. She narrowed her choice of outfit down to three different business suits. She decided it would be best to go for a business formal look so that she looked more like the 'American business woman' than 'space pirate', thus canceling out most of her wardrobe. _

_Knowing she would need help with the final decision of what to wear, she called Carolyn, hoping she had arrived early, to come help her. When she and Daniel arrived on base at 0900, they were surprised to have been told that the General was currently reading his wife into the program. That was something Carolyn, did not mention, neither did Col. Davis for that matter. Vala questioned whether or not Carolyn knew about that part of the plan._

_There was a knock on the door just then, bringing Vala out of her musings. She raced to the door hoping it was Carolyn. Vala opened the door to find both Carolyn and Sam in the hall._

"_Oh good. Another opinion." Vala exclaimed, pulling the two women in to the room, and pointed to the outfits spread out on her bead. "I'm not sure which outfit to wear."_

_Carolyn took a look at what was currently laid out and shook her head. Sam suppressed a sigh, wishing Vala would learn that what she wore didn't matter. "Well you are definitely not wearing what is on your bed." Carolyn declared as she headed for Vala's wardrobe. Sam and Vala followed her with their eyes._

_After having silently browsed through everything, Carolyn pulled out one of Vala's more conservative cocktail dresses. It was black with a V-neck front and full back that fell to her knees. "You should wear this one." Carolyn said holding up the dress. "You can wear your black strappy sandals with it."_

"_I agree." Sam spoke up when she saw Vala about to object. "Sure it's a cocktail dress, but that is you Vala. You are getting this because of who you are." Sam moved to stand beside Vala and put her arm around her shoulders. "Don't change who you are just because the President is giving you citizenship."_

"_Okay." Vala agreed stepping out of Sam's light embrace and accepted the dress from Carolyn. "But if I hear one disparaging remark about what I am wearing from anybody, I am going to blame the two of you." Vala walked into her en-suite to change and let her hair down._

"_Vala, when ceremonies like this are held for immigrants who are granted citizenship, most people show up in their everyday clothes. There is no dress code for this type of ceremony." Carolyn explained. "Granted this ceremony will have the President present, but still. You do not need to 'dress up' for it. Just be yourself. Besides the guys will just send Teal'c after anyone who thinks to bad mouth you."_

"_So, Samantha, I noticed you have a nice piece of jewelry on your left hand." Vala stated by way of changing the subject, as she didn't want to jinx what will happen at 1300. Carolyn turned to look at Sam with a raised eyebrow. "Just how did he propose?"_

"_Well it definitely wasn't the way he had planned it that is for sure." Sam confided with a grin, holding up her hand for them to inspect. "But I'm not complaining."_

"_Well what did he do?" Carolyn wanted to know. "And isn't that the ring you liked when we were at Tiffany's on Saturday?" Carolyn brought her hand up to inspect her ring further. Sam noticed this action and followed her line of sight._

"_You got engaged as well?" Sam asked excited._

"_Yep." Carolyn answered with a smile. "Take a closer look at your ring Sam and tell if you recognize it. Please tell me I am not going crazy."_

_Vala had just walked out of her en-suite to hear the end of Carolyn's plea, with Sam nodding her head. "You are not going crazy Carolyn. Those are the rings that you two picked out at Tiffany's on Saturday." Carolyn looked at her with wide questioning eyes, while Sam had somewhat of an idea of what Vala was telling them. "Daniel told me last night during dinner. Apparently Jack arranged for Col Davis to allow us to beam anywhere we wanted to so that he could take Daniel and Cameron shopping without having to worry about running into us at the mall. They ran into Cameron's cousin who directed them to where to buy the perfect rings." Vala was rummaging through her closet for the shoes Carolyn suggested, with Carolyn and Sam standing there looking at her in shock._

"_The President also let them expense the purchases to the program. Sort of as a thank you for all the hard work you have done for us, from the Citizen's of the United States." Vala pulled out the shoes she was looking for. "Ah, here you are my darlings."_

"_Yeah right, a thank you for the American people." Sam snorted. "More like a bribe to keep Jack from retiring again.""Not to mention General Landry and General Hammond." Vala added_

"_What you do mean Vala?" Carolyn asked a little scared of the answer. "My dad wouldn't sacrifice his career like that for me. Besides he doesn't know that Cameron was going to propose. Right?"_

"_Are you sure about that?" Vala asked somewhat incredulous. "Do you honestly believe that Cameron, who was born and raised in the South for the first 10 years of his life before his family moved to Kansas, would actually have the guts to propose without having first gained your fathers approval and blessing?" Sam and Carolyn both contemplated that point as Vala continued. "Not to mention what his own parents, never mind his grandmother, would do if they found out._

"_He was raised to be a perfect gentleman. Do not believe for one second that your father," at the look she received from Carolyn corrected herself, "sorry, OUR father knows nothing about your relationship, and where Cameron intends for it to go." Vala paused for a second. "Boy that is going to take some getting used to."_

"_She has a point Carolyn." Sam said. "Which means you really have nothing to worry about."_

"_Well shall we head to the control room?" Vala asked. _

"_Lets." Sam answered. _

_The three women left Vala's room and headed to the control room to wait for Teal'c to arrive._

_In the control room Jack, Daniel and Cameron were standing around while waiting for Teal'c to dial in, discussing their previous night._

"_I could have kicked myself for not putting that box away when Walter called to tell me that Carter had just left and would arrive shortly. I had the whole evening planned out. We were going to eat, talk while we ate, and I was going to lead into it." Jack explained. "But no, I had to leave the box on the table for her to see as soon as she walked into the room. Not that I am complaining or anything, but I wanted to ease into that part of the evening."_

"_What was her reaction to the actual ring?" Cameron wanted to know._

"_She actually cried." Jack exclaimed. "I told her how I found the ring before I opened the box.""Wait, you asked her to marry you without having the box open and holding it in front of her?" Daniel asked._

"_Yep." Jack answered. "She just froze staring at the box. I had to physically turn her around so she would look at me and not the box. She didn't even say 'Yes' all she could do was nod."_

"_Wow." Daniel was in awe. "Sam was speechless."_

"_She just nodded her acceptance?" Cameron asked, quite stunned that Sam couldn't form a word. "At least Carolyn finally got a 'Yes' out before I put the ring on her finger."_

_Just then the alarms when off for an incoming wormhole. Gen Landry entered the control just as the alarm started going off._

"_So I take it things went well for you last night Col?" Landry asked Cameron._

"_Yes Sir." Cameron said with a small smile on his face. The wormhole connected._

"_General it's Col Sheppard's IDC." CMSgt Harriman informed the General._

"_Open the iris Chief." The General instructed him._

"_Yes Sir. Opening Iris." Harriman put in hand on the palm scanner that would open the Iris. _

_Sheppard flies threw in a jumper with just Ronon on board._

"_Welcome back to the SGC Col., Specialist Dex." Landry greeted them. "Park the jumper and meet me in the briefing room.""Yes Sir." Sheppard responded. Harriman opened the launch bay doors in the room for Sheppard to fly the Jumper to its designated lab._

_Cameron and Daniel both turned to Landry with questioning looks on their faces. "Col Sheppard and Ronon Dex will represent Atlantis at this afternoon's ceremony." Was the General's explanation. "Chief, inform me when Teal'c gets here."_

"_Yes Sir." Harriman responded._

"_Exactly how many more off world delegates will be arriving for this ceremony for Princess?" Mitchell asked when the General was up in the briefing room._

"_No one else." Harriman informed them. "The Generals thought that Vala would like to know the names of her supporters from Atlantis, and requested two representatives be sent for the ceremony." _

"_Do you think they will be bringing a list of names with them?" Daniel asked. _

"_Of course we brought a list of names with us." Sheppard replied as he and Ronon entered the control room. "We also have instructions to bring back footage of the ceremony for everyone to see."_

"_How did you two get picked to come for this shindig?" Mitchell wanted to know._

"_Weir thought it best to have Atlantis represented by its most important members to show how important it was to everyone." Ronon stated as simply as possible. "So here we are."_

"_We better head up to the briefing room before Landry has our heads." Sheppard comments as the two friends make their way to the briefing room._

_Just then the alarms went off again. "We are reading Teal'c's IDC sir."_

"_Open the Iris Walter." Jack commanded as the three men made their way to the gate room to greet their friend and teammate._

"_Teal'c welcome home." Jack greeted Teal'c. "How are the kids?"_

"_They are doing well O'Neill." Teal'c replied as he walked down the ramp to greet his friends. "However they were upset that I was called back a day early with no explanation other than that of a ceremony my presence was required for."_

"_Let's head on up to the briefing room so we can explain everything." Jack said, as he leads everyone out to the briefing room._

"_I had attempted to dial in approximately 5 minutes ago and was unable to make a connection." Teal'c commented. "I was unaware there were any teams off world at this time."_

"_There aren't." Jack explained as they climbed the stairs to the briefing room. "We received some visitors from Pegasus for the ceremony."_

"_Col Sheppard, Ronon Dex it is good to see you again." Teal'c greeted the two men. "General Landry you as well."_

"_I trust you had a good time visiting with your family Teal'c." Landry inquired._

"_Indeed I did General Landry." Teal'c confirmed. "However they were most disappointed that I was called back a day early with no satisfactory explanation of the ceremony taking place this afternoon.""Well Teal'c, this ceremony is one we felt that would be best to keep mysterious." Jack explained. "Daniel if you will."_

"_Teal'c do you remember when Mitchell and I were called to Washington for the extensive meeting after the incident in Kansas?" Daniel started."Indeed. It puzzled me that only yourself and Col Mitchell were called before the President and the Joint Chiefs." Teal'c responded._

"_Well the reason for the meetings was not for what happened in Kansas." Daniel stated. "It was more about the proposal we sent regarding Vala, and her status with the SGC."_

"_In a nut shell, we submitted a proposal for Princess to be granted US Citizenship." Mitchell stated. "It got me thinking when she literally begged me to take her with me to my High School reunion."_

"_We talked about what it would mean for her to be able to have the freedom of having a place off base that she can go to without having to be escorted all the time." Daniel added. "So we petitioned the President and the Joint Chiefs to grant Vala citizenship."_

"_After that meeting I was contacted by the President to see what I could do to get support for this proposal from our International colleagues." Landry picked up the tale. "So I quietly put out feelers to certain individuals whom I knew were enthralled by Vala. Over a period of two months, myself and General O'Neill were able to gather enough support from our International community with which to pressure the IOA into agreeing."_

"_Last week is when everything came together." O'Neill took over. "The leaders of Great Britain, Canada, Germany, Russia, Australia, and Israel put pressure on Japan and China to agree to this, or they would be forced out of the program and major sanctions would be levied against their countries._

"_Landry had already by this point submitted the claim that Vala was his daughter. That push from our allies, thanks to our scientists, is what made everything okay." Jack smirked. "Of course, when China and Japan had threatened their representatives with unemployment if they didn't agree had to be the highlight of the whole process for me."_

"_You still have yet to provide me with footage of those meetings Jack." Landry commented. _

"_That's because that footage is technically not suppose to exist." Jack's smirk was more pronounced. "When the senior staff of the Atlantis expedition had come back to do their debriefings after their first year, I confiscated McKay to set up surveillance on everyone that would not be detected._

"_He and Carter worked on it for the short time he was in this galaxy, and Carter had to finish it after the Daedlus left. No one is to learn of this little bit of information on how we keep tabs on the IOA. It gets out I will have to borrow Ronon's blaster and put a whole in you that Lam will not be able to patch up."_

"_That is definitely not a hole you want." Sheppard piped up. "Did I show you the target page from when he first showed me his gun Mitchell?"_

"_Nope." Mitchell replied intrigued by what Ronon's blaster can do. "I would definitely remember that."_

"_Well we will have to take Ronon to the shooting range so he can demonstrate." Sheppard said with a smirk. "It is definitely a deterrent against Marines not taking him seriously. Maybe you should have it hanging up in your training room to show them that our off world allies know what they are talking about and should be listened to as if they were from earth.""That how you keep your jarheads in line Sheppard?" O'Neill asked surprised at this tactic._

"_Yes Sir." Sheppard informed him. _

"_The ones that don't listen right away get a live demonstration." Ronon added. "Haven't needed to give one of those in a while though. Would be happy to give one to the IOA for you."_

"_We will leave that to be a last resort Specialist Dex." Landry replied, preferring to call him by his military rank even though he is from a different planet as a show of respect for what he had done for his HomeWorld. "Right now I need you gentleman to get ready for the ceremony. We were able to put together a replica of your Setedan Dress Uniform from the specifications you provided us earlier. It is waiting for you in your quarters. Let me know if we need to do any alterations, and I will send someone to help you. Col, your Dress Uniform is awaiting you in your quarters as well."_

"_Thank you General." Ronon replied not used to the level of respect he was being shown by the General. Walter arrived in the briefing room just then._

"_Yes Sir." Sheppard replied at the same time._

"_Sergeant, please escort Specialist Dex and Col Sheppard to their temporary quarters." Landry ordered._

"_Yes Sir." Walter acknowledged the order. "If you gentleman would follow me." Sheppard and Ronon saluted Generals Landry and O'Neill before Walter lead them out of the briefing room._

"_Guess that is my queue to go get changed myself." Mitchell stated as he got up to leave, just as Carolyn, Sam and Vala walked into the briefing room._

"_Dad can I talk to you for a minute?" Carolyn asked._

"_Sure sweetheart." Landry replied and lead the way into his office._

"_Wonder what that is about?" Jack asked. Cam just pulled the ultrasound out of his pocket._

"_Probably about this." He handed the picture over to Jack. Jack looked at it in shock, then looked back up at Cameron, who nodded acknowledging that they were going to have a baby with a smile on his face. Everyone just turned to watch the General and CMO._

"_Dad, I know that you are aware of my relationship with Cam, and I want to thank you for not interfering with it at all." Carolyn started out. Landry could tell there was something bothering Carolyn._

"_But that isn't what you wanted to talk about is it?" Landry guessed. "What is it sweetheart?"_

"_I need to start looking for someone who will be able to temporary CMO without getting so power hungry that they won't have a problem stepping aside when I come back." Carolyn said._

"_Why would you.." Landry stopped mid sentence and just looked at his daughter. Tears started to run down her cheeks. "You're pregnant, aren't you??_

_Carolyn could do nothing but nod as the tears came out in earnest. Landry just pulled his daughter into his arms as tears started falling down his face as well. They stood like that for a good 5 minutes before Carolyn pulled back._

"_These are happy tears we are shedding right?" Landry asked with a small laugh._

"_Yeah, they are." Carolyn replied._

"_Good." Landry replied. "Now I think I have enough material to have an on base daycare set up. In the upper levels of course, so that the personnel attached to NORAD can take advantage of it as well." Landry smiled down at his daughter. "All I ever wanted for you was for you to be happy. He makes you happy. That is enough for me."_

"_Thanks dad." Carolyn said, tears still running down her cheeks. "Now all I have to do is tell mom."_

"_That can wait a couple days." Landry declared pulling her back into his arms for another hug. "Just get through the next couple of days before you do anything else."_

"_He proposed last night." Carolyn said after a few minutes of silence. "I said yes. He asked before I told him about the baby." _

"_I'm happy for you sweetheart." Landry responded. "How did he take the news that he is going to be a father?"_

"_He couldn't speak for what felt like the longest time." Carolyn recalled with a smile. "At first he was scared that he was seeing things. He just stared at the ultrasound picture, afraid that if he touched it, it would disappear. Then he told me he loves me and that me telling him I am pregnant topped his night. Then he thanked me. He definitely liked how I told him."_

"_What do you mean?" Landry quizzed, intrigued._

"_When we were in Canada yesterday, I made a hand out of wax that is holding a picture holder." Carolyn explained. "I had 'Baby's First Picture' written on it. We don't want to tell everyone on base just yet. We were thinking that when we want everyone to know we would bring the hand in and display it in your office and you can tell anyone who asks. If that is okay."_

"_That would be perfect." Landry confirmed with a smile. "Do you have a copy of the ultrasound picture with you or does Mitchell have it?"_

"_I have one here." Carolyn replied with a smile pulling one out of her pocket and handing it to her father. "You can keep this copy. I had the technician print up 6 copies so I could give one to you."_

"_Thank you Carolyn." Landry responded to being given a copy of his grandchild's first picture with a watery smile. "Lets finish getting ready for this ceremony. Then the three we can spend the rest of the day talking more out this little one and how we will be able to accommodate you."_


	10. Chapter 10

A/N: this chapter addresses an issue that I had with the SGA episode The Return part 1. No Carter bashing intended and hopefully has been explained adequately.

Ch 10

While Carolyn was speaking with Landry, everyone else that was in the briefing room sighed in relief that the General was not going to call Cam into his office for a dressing down. All that is except Jack. He knew that Hank had been waiting for this day to happen since his meeting with Mitchell.

"Well, now we know for sure dad likes you." Vala commented with a smile on her face, as she gave him a hug. "Congratulations."

"Thanks." Cameron returned the hug. "We should probably finish getting ready for the ceremony now. Don't want to be late watching my future sister-in-law getting sworn in as an American Citizen."

"No we don't." Vala agreed with a brilliant smile, pulling away from Cam. "Come along Samantha. Let's go get a cup of coffee while our gentlemen get ready for the ceremony."

As they all made to leave the briefing room, Cameron decided to hold back for a bit. He watched the father/daughter pair with a soft smile on is face. He knew this closeness was something Carolyn strived for no matter what persona she put forth. Happy that the two are working on evolving their relationship, he left the briefing room, and headed to his quarters to get ready for the ceremony.

Cameron began to wonder how the dynamic of the team would change now that two of its members were engaged, and another two were exploring a relationship with each other. He thought about talking it over with Sheppard, maybe get an outsiders opinion of the situation. Especially since Sam was engaged to the head of Home World Security.

Just as he got off the elevator on the floor where his quarters were located, he ran into Walter.

"Sorry Walter, wasn't watching where I was going." Mitchell apologized.

"That's okay Col." Walter replied. "Actually Col. There is something I would like to ask you."

"What is it?" Mitchell asked, having an idea of what he wanted to talk about.

"It's just that when I was heading to the briefing room to collect Col Sheppard and Ronon to escort them to their quarters, I overheard Gen O'Neill state that Gen Landry submitted a claim to the President and the Joint Chiefs that Vala is his daughter." Walter started.

"That's right." Mitchell stated.

"Is that what really got the IOA not to fight this?" Walter wanted to know.

"No." Mitchell stated. "That was just the icing on the cake so to speak. The IOA really has no say in who the US Government gives citizenship to. That was something Landry wanted to do to make Vala feel more at home here. Make sure that people know it is just a coincidence that citizenship was granted at the same time the adoption was completed."

"Yes Sir." Walter said with great relief. "When is it going to be announced that Vala is his daughter?""It will most likely be today sometime." Mitchell said. "That is something Princess will not be able to keep bottled up for too long. Not sure if it will be before or after the ceremony though.""Very good sir." Walter stated. "I'll leave you to get ready for the ceremony."

Mitchell walked off, heading towards his quarters. He was thinking about what Walter asked him. When he reached his quarters he saw his Dress Blues spread out on his bed. He smiled at that thought. Soon it would be both his and Carolyn's on base quarters. As the leader of SG-1 he was given one of the larger rooms for his quarters that included its own private bathroom. But because of his status, and to promote team unity and cohesion, he would not be moving his quarters. Carolyn would be moving into his.

That was one of the things that they discussed on ride into work. They decided that these would be their primary quarters, but Carolyn would keep her quarters by the infirmary to double over as a nursery for when the baby arrives, when she has to work while he is off-world.

He finished getting ready for the ceremony, making sure all his ribbons were on in the right order and straight while thinking what the reaction would be to the news that not only are he and Carolyn engaged, but pregnant as well. He just hoped no one would be malicious enough to think that they are only getting married because she is pregnant.

As Mitchell left his quarters to make his way to the Gate room for the ceremony, Sheppard and Ronon stepped out of their temporary quarters, which were in the same hall as SG-1's quarters, due to their status on Atlantis.

"Sheppard wait up." Mitchell called out as he closed his door. Ronon and Sheppard stopped and waited for Mitchell to catch up before heading to the elevators.

"What's up Mitchell?" Sheppard asked as Mitchell approached.

"Just thought I'd walk with you and catch up." Mitchell said with a smile.

"How are things going with Carolyn?" Sheppard asked. "You haven't told me much since your weekend away."

"Things are great." Mitchell said with a soft smile. "I proposed last night, she said yes."

"Congratulations." Sheppard and Ronon said at the same time, genuinely happy for him.

"And she's pregnant." Mitchell's smile grew bigger.

"Wow." Sheppard said. "Never would have thought I would be hearing that news so quickly."

"Me either." Mitchell commented. "I'm not sure who is more excited me or her."

"You sure it's not the General?" Ronon asked with a smirk. "After all this will be his first grandchild will it not?"

"He's got a point." Sheppard commented. "Besides with Vala now officially his daughter, it would be his second grandchild." They all thought about that one for a minute. "Never mind. This is his first. Can't wait for this ceremony to get underway. As much as this is a momentous occasion I want to get out of this uniform as quickly as possible."

"How much information has been relayed to Atlantis with regards to the ceremony and what was done to make sure it happened?" Mitchell asked, almost afraid of the answer.

"Just what was reiterated during the brief briefing for Teal'c." Sheppard informed him. "Well that and the General's soon to be not estranged wife threw her political weight backing the 'daughter claim'. O'Neill sent Elizabeth a jump drive full of files explaining your petition, requesting any support she could gather from Atlantis."

"Really" Mitchell asked.

"Yeah. Said something about not trusting this information to be transmitted through normal channel's due to the sensitive nature of the information." Ronon confirmed.

"Caldwell was instructed to hand deliver it to Elizabeth. He must have had an idea what was on that drive because he suggested that she have the senior staff gather in her office before she opened it." Sheppard continued, mindful of who they were passing in the hallway. He paused while they waited for the elevator. Once it arrived the three got on. They were the only three on the car, so Sheppard continued. "He also suggested to McKay when we arrived that he make sure the computer that the files were opened on could not be hacked.

"When Weir opened the files, we were shocked, yet not so shocked by what you had requested. Everyone knows that Teal'c was given Landed Immigrant status because he did not want to give up his claim with his people. People thought the same would have been extended to Vala sooner than it was. Once we had gone through all of the files, McKay started going through personnel files, then wrote an algorithm to determine which scientists would give the most support. Not sure what parameters he used to find the best 'candidates to support Vala'." Sheppard shrugged.

"Wow." Mitchell said.

"Yeah." Sheppard agreed. "She charmed a lot of people when you guys visited Atlantis. A lot of people that weren't included in the initial group of support candidates, had somehow heard about the endeavor and stepped forward to offer their support as well."

"A couple of the scientists who were left off the initial lists were kinda put out that they weren't included." Ronon added. "A couple sessions with a few of the Marines, and they were straightened out. Once it got out to everyone, there were a few who voiced strong objections to what was happening.""McKay decided to start going through all communications that were heading to earth to sensor out the ones that could hurt the cause." Sheppard commented. "Not that he had much choice. His girlfriend threatened to dump him if anything got out that was negative towards Vala."

"Interesting." Mitchell stated. "So everyone wants this to happen?""Pretty much." Sheppard agreed. "Many were pissed that they didn't get picked to come, but understood why only we were selected to come. Hence the 'demand' for footage of the ceremony."

"Wonder if we can set up a live feed." Mitchell wondered.

"We should be able to." Sheppard commented. "McKay said that if it was brought up all we needed to do is get permission to dial into the Midway station and then have them dial Atlantis. He has it set up so that both gates can be opened at the same time. I would just have to dial the second gate from here using the jumper. He sent an algorithm with me so that it can happen.""Are you sure it will work?" Mitchell asked.

"Oh it'll work." Ronon informed him. "We tried it on the way here. Chuck dialed the Midway station, once McKay confirmed that the Gate was connected at the station, Sheppard dialed through to the SGC."

"We left before McKay confirmed that the wormhole here was established." Sheppard added as the three men walked into the briefing room. "Once we arrived the wormhole was opened and McKay was able to confirm with Atlantis that it connected about 10 minutes after we left."

"Do you need to use the onboard DHD to dial out to the second gate, or did he give you a tablet with a dialing program and the algorithm on it?" Mitchell asked.

"Both actually. The algorithm is set up on a tablet without a dialing program." Sheppard confirmed. "The jumper will need to be powered up and the tablet connected to the onboard DHD, but McKay wrote this version so that the autopilot is not engaged."

"What are you three yapping about?" O'Neill asked.

"Just had the idea of getting Atlantis a live feed for the ceremony Sir." Mitchell advised him. "Sheppard, and Dex were explaining that the Atlantis team already came up with a working idea to get them a live broadcast. All we need is your authorization to proceed."

"And just how exactly do you plan to do this?" O'Neill asked. "Carter told me that it is not possible for both Gates at the Midway to be opened at the same time.""That is true Sir with the way current dialing protocols are set up." Sheppard informed him. "McKay was able to find a way to have both gates open at the same time.""And how was he able to do this Col?" O'Neill asked with steel in his voice, not liking that he was making Carter appear to not know what she is talking about.

"Simple. He had a group of scientists familiar with the workings of the jumpers helping him." Ronon stated, not caring for the General's tone. "Chuck dialed the Midway station, then Sheppard used the modified algorithm McKay and his team wrote to dial the second gate once the first gate was connected from the jumper. That's how we got here." Everyone in the gate room looked a little shocked at that. "What you didn't notice that it took us longer than the last time to get here?"

Sam walked over to one of the computers and pulled up the reports to confirm.

"He is correct Sir." Carter stated. "There was a 20 minute difference."

"I can show you the program Col., if you want to check it out." Sheppard offered to Sam. "The only reason why we have this is because our scientists were researching the idea as they knew that this ceremony would be taking place, where as your's were somewhat in the dark."

"How are we going to be able to do that without engaging the jumpers autopilot for when the onboard dialing devise is used?" Carter wanted to know.

"McKay, with the help of Zelenka and Simpson, was able to find a work around." Sheppard said. He noticed that most of the personnel in the room who were stationed at the SGC were getting upset about how they were making McKay sound smarter than Carter. "You have to remember. We live in Atlantis, you live here. We are surrounded by Ancient tech everywhere we go. Our scientists have to know all systems inside out in order for us to do our jobs correctly. Hell Dr. Simpson could have written the algorithm if she was privy to original one you and McKay had written, simply because she has more experience dealing with jumpers and Ancient tech than you do Col. McKay keeps that thing under lock and key. The only time it can be used is if his command code is entered as the password."

"And anyone with half a brain would realize this." Ronon added.

"So what you are saying is that the scientists, who were all left on Atlantis but wanted to be here, came up with a way to be able to watch the ceremony live? Correct?" Vala asked.

"Yep." Ronon said.

"Then why should it matter that the solution came from Atlantis and not from Samantha?" Vala asked the rest of the room. "They knew that they would only get the highlights of this ceremony, and they put their heads together to come up with a way to be able to watch the ceremony live. I'm sure, if she had thought of it and was given the time, Samantha would have come up with this solution."

"I'm not so sure Vala." Sam said. "Sheppard brings up a very valid point. Their scientists deal with Ancient tech day in and day out. They would know how to find a work around to the autopilot quickly. I would have had to spend at least a month familiarizing myself with the jumpers systems before being able to find the work around.""And that month probably would have been spent on Atlantis." Daniel added.

"The jumper we have doesn't recharge the way it should." Carter explained to Sheppard and Ronon when she saw their puzzled looks.

"Then we will take that one back to Atlantis and leave the one we brought with us here. They don't recharge well when they are away from the city. Ask McKay how that works, I tune him out when he tries to explain it." Sheppard said. "Glad Weir talked me out of taking my personal one."

"Didn't take much for her to do that. Zelenka still hasn't finished repairing it from that hit we took last week." Ronon reminded him.

"True." Sheppard remembered. "We should probably switch the jumper you have every month or so depending on power levels. Also you should try to find someone with a strong natural gene to work the project. They give up their secrets more easily that way."

"Seeing as how the question of getting the jumper to recharge properly has been settled, somewhat, and the fact that there is a solution to allowing Atlantis to watch the ceremony live, I say we stop this whole game of who is smarter and just authorize the action General." Carolyn instructed Jack. "You don't want to upset Vala on this day of all day's do you?"

"Yes Jack, you wouldn't want to upset me now would you?" Vala picked up. "It is now obvious that if Samantha were stationed permanently on Atlantis then she would have been part of the solution. So just authorize this so that we can make contact with Atlantis so that they have time to set up the broadcast throughout the city."

"Fine." O'Neill said. "You have your authorization. Sheppard show Carter what McKay sent so she can copy it for quick dialing if we need to contact you."

"That will take a while General." Sheppard informed him. "The copy we brought is read-only. McKay doesn't trust that the Trust won't find a way to get their hands on it and rewrite it to dial a different gate in Pegasus. The algorithm is designed to specifically work only if Atlantis is the destination. To copy everything out exactly would take approximately 5 days. Apparently Simpson had a run-in with the Trust and put in a few off chutes at different points in the equation that are not easy to spot.""McKay said to leave the tablet we brought with us here." Ronon added. "There is a specific code that will be given to the Col only that will be required to be entered for the thing to work."

"Paranoid much?" O'Neill snarked with feeling, knowing where the paranoia was coming from. "Gaud, I so want the Trust to be found and destroyed so that we can go back to trusting everyone we work with and not having to question if someone we don't know has a hidden agenda."

"That would be nice Sir." Sheppard agreed. "With your permission General's we can show the Col what we brought.""Permission Granted." Landry answered. "Mitchell go with them. I want a second person to have that code here in the event that Carter has been called away for something."

"Yes Sir." Mitchell agreed.

"Carolyn why don't you come along." Sheppard suggested. "That way we can show you where all the medical equipment is stored in the event you need to use the jumper as a med-evac.""Excellent idea Sheppard." Landry commented. "With more pilots rotating through here who have the gene that would be a good use for the jumper besides trying to figure out how it works."

"Maybe you should let some of the scientists who have rotated back here in on the project." Ronon suggested, as they walked out of the room. "After all, they did have to already learn about them, they would be a tremendous help to your staff here."

Everyone in the briefing room sat in total silence for a moment, reeling at what Ronon said just before leaving.

"Did he just say what I think he said?" Daniel asked.

"I believe he did." Vala confirmed slightly amused. "I'm not sure why you all are so stunned by it. When the Atlantis team was sent back earlier this year, everyone of them was not allowed to work on a project that related to Ancient technology. He just called you on that decision and told you what idiots you are for having done that, and are still doing that. And you wonder why they all want to rotate back to Atlantis."

"Maybe we should do that Sir." Daniel interjected. "Ancient technology is similar to Ori technology. They may be able to figure it out faster than we can given their background."

"Agreed." Landry said."We'll talk about reassignments at a later date." O'Neill decided. "Let's get this ceremony and the trip to Orilla out of the way. I'll have Reynolds recall some from Area 51 while you are gone to help out."

Back in the jumper Carter was going over the macro McKay sent while Sheppard and Ronon were showing Carolyn where all the supplies were stored.

"Wow. If Sheppard hadn't mentioned the hidden off chutes Simpson had written in I would have never found them and would be wondering what the hell McKay was thinking writing this." Carter commented to Mitchell.

"So it will work?" Mitchell asked.

"I can only assume so given how they got here. Sheppard was right and wrong about copying this thing." Carter explained.

"What was he wrong about?" Mitchell wanted to know.

"The length of time it would take to copy this." Carter said. "Just glancing over this it looks pretty straight forward. But to find the additions that make it work will take longer than the trip to Orilla and back."

"This is the jumper Carson used to take the second devise out of your back?" Carolyn asked.

"Yep." Ronon confirmed.

"I wouldn't suggest doing meatball surgery back here if that is what you are thinking Carolyn." Sheppard cautioned. "Removing that devise was a far cry from lifesaving surgery."

"But it can be done if there is no chance of a wounded soldier making it to the SGC?" Carolyn pressed.

"If it is absolutely necessary, make sure there are no ships in orbit, head there, get away from your known location as quickly as possible and cloak before opening anyone up." Sheppard advised. "If that is not an option, activate the shield. Just don't go through the gate while operating."

"Who would have thought of turning a jumper into a MASH outfit." Mitchell remarked.

"Not Carson that's for sure." Sheppard responded giving Carolyn a side hug. "He makes sure the patient is stable for transport and waits until they are in the infirmary before opening them up. You sure have found yourself a gem Shaft."

"Thanks, Shep." Mitchell replied.

"I hear congratulations are in order Carolyn." Ronon said stepping up to her giving her a hug as well.

"Thanks." Carolyn smiled. "Just don't mention anything about the baby yet. We want everyone to get used to the engagement first."

"What baby?" Ronon asked with a smile and a wink.

"Well them, Carter you might want to radio the control room to see if they are ready for us to dial Atlantis." Sheppard commented, walking to the control panel to activate the comm link.

"Right." Carter agreed. "Control this is Carter.""Carter, how goes things?" O'Neill replied.

"Sheppard was right about one thing Sir. It would take too long for me to copy out the macro for our purposes." Carter reported. "He just shortened the time it would take to copy it out.""How long would it take you?" O'Neill asked somewhat amused.

"At least two months Sir." Carter replied completely serious. "Just glancing over it I can't find where the off chutes are, and from what I can see the thing shouldn't work. But there is only one way to know for sure."

"We are connected to Midway Col Sheppard." Landry cut in. "We are ready when you are."

"Yes Sir." Sheppard and Ronon took over to show Carter the sequence required to make this work. "It is a two man operation. We will have to feed a second persons information in once we connect to Atlantis."

"Add Mitchell's data Sheppard." Landry ordered.

"Yes Sir." Sheppard confirmed.

"Ready." Ronon reported.

"Dial the Gate." Sheppard ordered. Ronon inputted the Gate address to Atlantis while Sheppard's hands were on the control sticks. The HUD came up just as Ronon engaged the sequence. Sheppard 'thought' in the loading of the altered macro to enable to Gate to dial without the jumper taking flight. Connection was established.

"Atlantis this is Sheppard." Sheppard reported through the comm.

"Sheppard this is Atlantis. Standby for Dr. McKay." Chuck's voice was heard through the intercom in the jumper as well as in the control room.

"Sheppard. Who brought up the idea of getting us a live feed?" Rodney asked.

"Mitchell did actually." Sheppard reported, knowing Rodney would want to find out who one the pool for that one.

"Hah." Rodney couldn't believe it.

"It's true." Ronon confirmed. "No help was needed really." Ronon knew that Sheppard won the pool and what everyone owed him.

"Alright. The Daedlus just arrived in orbit so we will be using the Chair for the broadcast." McKay reported.

"Everything is ready on this end Rodney." Zelenka informed him. "We are just waiting for access to the security feed from the SGC."

"Access granted Atlantis." Landry informed them. "Chief, patch through the feed from the Gate room.""Yes Sir." Harriman responded. He started connecting the feed to the control room in Atlantis, but was unsure how to get the feed to the Chair room.

"If you don't mind Walter, we can adjust the signal on this end so that it feeds directly into the Chair." Zelenka suggested, having guessed the Chief's dilema.

"All yours Radek. The link is open." Walter stated, relieved he wouldn't have to figure that out with Col Carter in the jumper.

"Definitely going to have to reassign the Atlantis personnel here to the mountain." O'Neill whispered to Landry.

"Take care of that while I am gone." Landry agreed.

"Everything is set up here Radek." Rodney relayed. "Caldwell, are you getting the feed?"

"Reading 5x5 McKay." Caldwell confirmed.

"How do you plan on keeping the wormholes open for the next hour?" Carter asked.

"We have a modified MALP waiting on Midway." Rodney answered. "It is programmed to wait 35 minutes from the time the wormhole is opened before coming through to Atlantis. That's all you have to do. Send a MALP through to Midway before your Gate is scheduled to shut down."

"That will give you another 38 minutes as long as you keep the jumper powered up." Radek added. "We ran a simulation last week to confirm and it worked then so it should work live."

"Do we need to modify the MALP?" Carter asked.

"You shouldn't need to." Radek explained. "Just a standard MALP.""Thank you Rodney and Radek." Carter replied.

"You're welcome." Radek replied for them both.

"Everything is set and ready to go." Rodney replied in a distracted voice. "How long before the ceremony is set to begin?"

"It should start in the next 10 minutes Dr. McKay." Landry informed him.

"Excellent." Rodney replied. "Enough time for everyone to stop what they are doing and get to the nearest Media room."

"Chuck open a channel." Weir spoke for the first time. "Attention all personnel. We are currently connected with Stargate Command. The swearing in Ceremony for Vala Mal Doran will begin within the next 10 minutes. We will be recording it on our end for those of you who are unable to step away from your stations to view later, so please do not kill each other on your way to your designated Media Room."


	11. Chapter 11

A/N: Sorry it took so long to post. I have been having issues with my computer that have now been resolved. I assure you I have not abandoned this story. Hope it's worth the wait.

Ch 11

"McKay, are you ready to send the code for Col Carter to use should they need to dial us right away?" Sheppard asked.

"Yes." McKay replied. "Mitchell have you told anyone your secret yet?"

"No." Mitchell responded a little uncomfortable with where this is going. "Why?""Because the Macro will only work if you think it being activated." McKay replied. "It was a little something Simpson added to ensure the Trust can't use it. She is more paranoid than I can be sometimes.""Just what have you been holding back from us Cam?" Carter wanted to know.

"That he has the gene." McKay told her. "And that it is almost as strong as Sheppard's. Probably would be as strong if he was stationed here.""What do you mean?" Carolyn asked.

"Beckett had started working on the ATA retrovirus again to try to strengthen the gene given to recipients, and to make the success rate higher." McKay informed her. "He was working with his gene to begin with, and noticed that the more he used Ancient Tech the stronger his gene was becoming. So he went back and took a new sample from Sheppard to see if there was something to it.

"He discovered that Sheppard's gene was also getting stronger. We're not sure if it is from living in the city for 3 years, or if it is from using Ancient Tech. When Mitchell was here he was actually able to use the technology almost as easy as Sheppard. Simpson said his level of connection was the same as Sheppard's was when we first arrived."

"Are you saying that Cam can use Ancient Tech as well as if not better than Gen O'Neill?" Carter asked.

"Probably better." Rodney replied. "We weren't here when O'Neill had the run of the City to take proper readings so we're not totally sure. Simpson theorized from the data she has that O'Neill was able to use the Chair in Antarctica the way he did because of the Ancient download to his brain. If given the opportunity she would probably love to prove or disprove that thesis. But that can only be done from here."

"Everything is set for the palm scan Rodney." Radek interrupted. "Col Mitchell, Rodney and I will be able to monitor the Jumper from here. We are also set up to monitor the control room if they wish to concentrate on the ceremony instead."

"Excellent." McKay stated.

"What palm scan?" Mitchell asked. "I thought all I had to do was think it to work and it will."

"Yes it will, but what if they need to use the jumper to contact us while you are off world Col?" Radek asked. "This way if we scan in at least one palm now, Stargate Command will still be able to use the algorithm to contact us."

"Ready when you are Sheppard." McKay informed them. "All you have to do is get the palm scan sent to us during the ceremony of the pre-selected person and we will be good to go.""Roger that McKay. Sheppard out." Sheppard replied and cut off communication. Ronon was busy bringing up the program that would be used to read the palm. "Carolyn if you would be so kind as to step up to the control's.""Why Carolyn?" Carter asked. "And why didn't we do this while still communicating with Rodney?""Wouldn't want the Trust to find out the General's daughter is the key do we Col?" Sheppard asked. "No one outside this jumper and my team know who the person here is. And we plan to keep it that way."

Carolyn looked to Cam for guidance. He nodded his head, letting her know that everything will be all right.

"It's okay. I trust John with this." Cam told her. "Landry approved for he and Ronon to be here for 4 weeks after we leave to keep you company. They will be able to show you how to work everything."

"We won't actually be doing the palm scan here." Sheppard informed them. "We have a print of Simpson's to send back as a misdirect incase we are being monitored. Her hand is about your size. Ronon and I have to go back to Atlantis for 2 weeks before we can take the 4 weeks here. Elizabeth convince your dad that it would be a good thing for you to come back with us to act as CMO while we complete the interviews for a new one."

"It's done." Ronon informed them. "The jumper recognizes Mitchell's and Carolyn's signatures and the print was received by Zelenka."

Cameron radioed down to confirm that Atlantis was connected and standing by for the ceremony to begin.

"Control this is Mitchell. We are all set up here." Mitchell stated. "McKay has it set up so that he and Zelenka can control the jumper from there as well as the control room so that everyone here can concentrate on the ceremony. Let General Landry know that we are on our way back.""Understood Col." Walter replied. "Relaying message now. Control room out."

Just then Jack returned to the Gate room with the President and the Joint Chiefs.

"What's the word Chief?" Landry asked, watching people file into the 'Gate room for the ceremony.

"Atlantis is connected and receiving a live feed from the 'Gate room." Walter reported. "Col's Carter, Mitchell, and Sheppard, along with Specialist Dex and Dr Lam are on their way back from the Jumper and should arrive shortly. Dr's McKay and Zelenka will be monitoring both Control rooms and the Jumper from Atlantis so that we can concentrate on the ceremony."

"Excellent." President Hayes exclaimed. "They were able to find a way for Atlantis to watch the ceremony live. Now all we need to do is get this show on the road. Chief, would it be possible for me to speak with Elizabeth for a moment?"

"Yes Sir." Walter said. "Atlantis this is SGC Control.""Control this is Atlantis." McKay responded.

"We are confirming that you are monitoring the control room for the duration of the ceremony." Walter requested.

"Yes yes. We will let you know if and when to send your MALP through to MIDWAY to keep the 'Gate active." McKay confirmed.

"We thank you for this Dr. McKay." Walter replied. "The president would like to speak with Dr. Weir."

"Yes Mr. President." Weir acknowledges while Rodney activate the Video conferencing.

"Elizabeth, how many will be able to watch the ceremony?" Hayes asks.

"Only a few will not be able to watch the ceremony live as they are on Security Duty." Elizabeth states. "However we will be recording the ceremony for them to watch later."Sheppard Mitchell and Ronon arrive in the control room as Elizabeth finishes her explanation. Sam and Carolyn went to wait with Vala in the corridor outside the 'Gate room.

"Dr Weir is McKay around?" Sheppard asks.

"What do you want Sheppard? I'm busy." McKay responds.

"Would it cause a problem if we sent their Jumper through instead of a MALP?" Sheppard asks. "There's isn't charging properly on the Naquada Generators."

"What are the power levels sitting at?" McKay asked. "And how long have they been charging the jumper for?"

"Just under 50% right now with 3 Generator's hooked into it." Mitchell replied. "It has been charging for about 2 months and we can't get power levels past 54%."

"It could be damaged somewhere." Zelenka guessed. "It should fully charge within one week hooked up to 3 generators.""Zelenka, you and Simpson look it over when they bring it back." McKay agreed. "Mitchell since you seem to know a lot about what is going with your Jumper, as any good pilot should, I'll program it from here so that no one can run any diagnostics on it without your command code entered.""I have gotten some preliminary readings to go over Rodney." Zelenka informed him. "Col Sheppard I would suggest you not send it through instead of the MALP. While that does work in simulation, the Jumper we used was not damaged in any way. Until we can run a full diagnostic on it, it is better we err on the side of caution."

"Very well." Mitchell replied. "The command code thing will only need to be entered from this end right? I don't have to back out of the Orilla trip to work with you do I?"

"No Col I do not need you here to fix your Jumper." McKay replied.

"Gentlemen. Let's not forget why we are connected in the first place." Elizabeth reminded them gently but firmly. "You can talk about this to your hearts content after the ceremony."

"Mr. President lets get this ceremony started." General Landry suggested. "That way there is more time for celebration before we get underway tomorrow."

"Good idea General." President Hayes agreed. Everyone but Walter proceeded to the 'Gate room. He volunteered to stay in the control room to await Atlantis' signal to send the MALP if it was needed.

As everyone reached the corridor outside the 'Gate room Cameron noticed that Madison was there waiting with Carolyn Vala and Sam.

"Hey." Cam greeted her. "I didn't know you have clearance for this gig."

"I was given it yesterday." Madison replied. "Apparently this is going to be my permanent post after my tour on the Regan."

"Are you sure you want to be posted here with this mutt or do you want to come to Atlantis with me?" Sheppard asked with a smile.

"Hmm…..now there is a conundrum." Madison responded with a smile stepping forward to greet him as well. "Stationed with my cousin or with my cousin? Which one do I want to answer to?"

"Pick me, pick me." Both Sheppard and Mitchell begged at the same time. As they all looked at each other a peace came over the three that they hadn't felt since their Academy days. They all started to laugh in relief.

"Oh I can't wait for my tour to be over." Madison commented.

"Just don't get dead." Sheppard begged. "Let's get this ceremony over with. I can just here McKay complaining about the power levels and how much work he is getting behind on because he is stuck in the control room monitoring 'Gate output levels."

The three were the last to enter the 'Gate room. They were signaled by Carolyn to join them on the ramp. As they made their way up the ramp, John noticed some of the stares they were getting from various personnel. Knowing why they were staring he stared right back at them. When they reached their destination, Cameron took his place next to Carolyn, where family members were encouraged to stand, while Sheppard Ronon and Madison stood with SG-1.

Walter saw that the last of the 'guests' were in place, and called the room to order. Once everyone was standing at attention, General's Landry and O'Neill entered the room followed by the Judge Advocate General, the Joint Chiefs and the President. O'Neill stopped to stand with SG-1, while Landry, the JAG, the Joint Chiefs and the President continued to the top of the ramp.

"Ladies and Gentlemen," Gen Landry started. "As you are all aware we are gathered here today to witness the swearing in of one of our own as a United States Citizen, Vala Mal Doran." A cheer went up throughout the 'Gate room, and could be heard by Walter being echoed back from Atlantis.

"Since Vala came here two years ago, looking for a treasure left on Earth by the Ancients, she has assisted us in our fight against the Ori. The one event that stands out in my mind is when she was able to find a way to destroy the first Super Gate the Ori were trying to assemble. Using the Rings aboard the Prometheus she was able to locate the cloaked cargo ship and used it to act as the last link of the Gate. This caused a disruption in the energy linking the pieces together, which resulted in the 'Gate being destroyed when it was hit by the shockwave created by the formation of the singularity. As she was attempting to ring back to Prometheus, the matter stream was sucked into the Singularity. Vala was transported to the Ori Galaxy.

"This event, though having obvious negative outcomes, provided us with unexpected intelligence. Using Ancient technology Vala was able to contact us via Dr Jackson to warn us that the Ori had a working Super Gate and that an invasions was imminent. This information also provided us with new challenges to face. We had to look for a way to block the Super Gate, while we stepped up the search for the Sangraal. We rose to the challenge.

"You are probably wondering why I am mentioning any of this." Many personnel nodded there heads, while some looked suspiciously like they had an idea where this is going. "This account, along with others involving Vala, was brought up when the question of whether or not citizenship should be granted, was being considered by the President. As the President was scrutinizing every mission my daughter participated in to determine if she would in fact protect this country and this planet, members of the International community attempted to derail SG-1's proposal of Citizenship.

"This required the President to broaden his inquiry to not just the members of her team. Feelers were put out to Atlantis to see if any information could be gathered from their Scientists regarding their dealings with Vala. This information gathering filtered over into the Medical and Military communities on Atlantis as well as all three communities here. What was reported back to the President and the Joint Chiefs of Staff was information that could not be ignored. However we will continue with this after my daughter swears the oath of citizenship. I will now turn the Podium over to Admiral Parker."

General Landry steps back and to the left of the podium as Admiral Parker approaches.

"Mr. President, General's, Admiral's and honored guests. This tasks is one that I am proud to conduct as it is not one that I am normally given the opportunity to perform." Admiral Parker started. "When I was asked by the President to swear in Miss Mal Doran as a Citizen I was provided with her file. It provided me with some interesting reading. It also provided me with some nightmares. I am not sure how many of you are aware of what she went through as a host. I am advising you that if you experience nightmares from the tasks you perform now, do not read this file as you will be unable to get an uninterrupted nights sleep. And I say this with the deepest respect for Miss Mal Doran.

"She has overcome and been able to survive the worst thing imaginable, and that is something I can say with certainty. So it is my Privilege to be the one who has the honor of swearing Miss Mal Doran in as a Citizen. Miss Mal Doran, if you would please joint me at the Podium."

All could see the tears that were forming in Vala's eyes as she made her way to the Podium, overcome with the sense of belonging for the first time in what felt like a life time. As she took her place where Landry directed her to, she glanced back at her friends and family. All gave her smiles and nods of encouragement that she could do this.

"Will you place your left hand on the bible and raise your right hand." Admiral Parker instructed as he held out a bible. Vala did as asked. "Now repeat after me. 'I Vala Mal Doran…'"

"I Vala Mal Doran…"

As she was taking the oath of Citizenship the tears that were threatening to spill won the battle. Tears streaked down her face in the realization that a Nation, even if only a handful knew her, were embracing her as one of their own. Oh how she wished Sal could be here to see this. That would be the one thing that would make this day complete. When she was finished she turned to Landry, who was standing to her right, and embraced him. This was the first hug they shared as Father and Daughter. Knowing what was coming Karen stayed where she was and motioned for Carolyn and Cam to do the same.

"Congratulations Vala." Admiral Parker turned the President. "Mr. President, you wanted to say a few words."

"Thank you Admiral. Vala if you could stay here for a moment." Hayes started his short speech. "Earlier General Landry was providing you with a few details regarding the investigation that took place in order for this ceremony to take place.

"The preliminary information that was provided by Lt Col Mitchell and Dr Jackson to myself and the JCOS was enough to convince me to grant their request. However, this request had somehow been made known to the International Oversight Committee. They were attempting to derail the process as a means of punishment for the agreement made with Russia to keep the Stargate here.

"This created a diplomatic situation that required we tread with caution. While we don't bow to pressure from outside governments when considering applications for citizenship this was not an ordinary case. We had the support from most of our Allies as they agreed this was not a matter that they needed to be involved in. With a few countries threatening cooperation on future funding agreements, we had to find a way to change their minds.

"We sent out requests to both General Landry and Dr Weir asking if they could gather support from their people to aide in our cause. The response we received back was overwhelming. Personnel from every field provided us with support for our cause.

"They also provided extra support for a proposal General Jumper submitted." General Jumper approached the President. "The tale General Landry imparted on you regarding his daughter is the reason I will be awarding the one medal that I believe Vala deserves, the Medal of Honor."

A cheer went up throughout the gate room. Looks of shocked pleasure were seen on the faces of SG-1. Personnel on Atlantis were cheering as well. The tears were now streaming down Vala's face. She had read about this medal that she was being given. Only a select few were ever awarded this medal, and of that few, a very small percentage were awarded to a living soldier, and even fewer still were given to civilians.

President Hayes took the Medal from its resting place, and approached Vala. General Landry nudged her forward. Everyone watching the ceremony felt that they in someway helped Vala receive the recognition she deserved to receive this medal. They all felt gratified that this is the culmination of all their efforts they put forth over the past 3 months.

Once the medal was securely fastened around her neck Carolyn was the first to reach Vala and hug her in congratulations, Karen soon arrived and enveloped both of her daughters in a hug.

Back on Atlantis, Rodney was busy watching all the systems to pay too close attention to what was happening in the Gate room on Earth. He knew that if he wanted to focus on it he could do so later, right now he was more worried about making sure everything went smoothly. Having seen that the medal was given he decided it was time to cut off the live feed and record the rest to the mini server he and Zelenka set up in the back of the jumper. He turned to Elizabeth.

"I think now would be a good time to break off from the ceremony." Rodney suggested. "We don't need to watch the rest live."

"I agree." Elizabeth concurred and turned to Chuck. "Patch me through city wide only."

"Yes Ma'am." Chuck replied and did as instructed.

"Attention all personnel. We will be closing the gate at our end in the next few minutes. Even though the ceremony hasn't officially ended, we will still hear about what happened. Please return to your duties. Weir out." Elizabeth nodded to Chuck who turned of the comm. "Let Col Sheppard know and shut it down Rodney."

"Right." Rodney turned back to his computer. "Zelenka, are you ready?"

"Yes Rodney. We are standing by." Radek replied.

"All right." Rodney touched his ear piece. "Sheppard we are going to shut down the Gates from this end. We activated the server connected in the Jumper to record the rest of the ceremony. Use your command code from the terminal in the control room to shut it down when things switch over to the reception. Walter wait until he disconnects the server before shutting down the Gate."

"Roger that McKay." Sheppard whispered into his comm.

"Will be waiting for you Col before shutting down the Gate on this end." Walter added. "SGC out."

"Okay Zelenka, cut the recording, and the broadcast to the Daedlus." Rodney instructed. "Cutting power to the Gate…" Received confirmation from Zelenka that the connection had been severed. "…..now."

The Gate shut down as everyone in the control room watched on. Those who were watching the Broadcast in the conference room left to go back to their posts, thankful they were able to see the ceremony live.

Back at the SGC Gen Jumper called the room to order.

"This will conclude the ceremony for today. There will be a small reception held in the Mess Hall." Gen Jumper and the rest of the Joint Chiefs began their trek back to the elevators that would take them to the surface.

"Unfortunately I will not be able to attend the reception Vala." Hayes told Vala. "I have to return to Washington. There are meetings that need to be attended. Maj. Marks has that list you wanted though. Congratulations."

With that the President turned to follow his Generals to the surface. Sheppard made his way to the control room and inputted his code where prompted so that Walter could safely shut down the gate.


End file.
